Mini Album fun

Supplies Needed:
*Coffee Filters (whatever size, I normally do 4 or 5, however many, whatever color)
*Card Stock (3-5)
*Scissors & trimmer
*Adhesive (I like tacky glue initially)
*Pattern Paper (3-5)
*Crop-a-dile (or hole punch)
*Binder clips (depending on how you bind)
*Ribbons & pretties


1. First I decide what order to put the papers in. I like to use PP (pattern paper) for the back ground. I put a thin line of tacky glue on the CF (coffee filter) and place it down on the paper. Be cautious! This paper is double sided- make sure you are placing the adhesive side down on the side you DO NOT want to see! Also, make sure if your paper has a lip on it, that you either cut it off before placing the CF, or be sure you aren't hitting it- and ending up with it on your CF!

2. Once it's down, I hold it down (my hands on top of it) for a minute or two. Then I take my scissors and cut it out. I continue this until all CF's are covered.


3. I then take my complimentary CS (card stock) and cut perfect squares that overlap the CF. I like the dimension this creates, you can cut to whatever size you wish. I adhere these with a bit of tacky glue as well. I do place one per double page. It cuts up the PP, and also adds a spunk of fun color & writing space.

4. I then take my crop-a-dile and punch 2 holes on the sides. This will be where I place my binder rings after decorating.

5. After the holes are punched, I will then take the left-over cuts of CS & PP to make square tags to go inside the pockets. These add extra pages to your book, great for writing, holding pictures, or whatever you might want to hide!

6. You are then left with a CF Album! This is the semi-finished product. You see how the squares give it more dimensions, and a bigger work space.

This is where the fun comes in. You'll decorate it to your hearts content!!

To see some of my finished examples, click here!

Have fun!

What a 9yr old can do

Children learn from work, and children, I believe, SHOULD work. There is so much that makes a family run smoothly- and while I don't recall every single chore I had to do as a child, I do know I had them. So as a very democratic family, we held a family council over chore duties.

We pow-wowed what we, as adults, thought he was capable of. He spoke on what he thought was fair. Then we decided on the amount. I'm a firm believer that as a member of a family- we all have chores to do. But, I am also a firm believer that actions can and should be rewarded upon. So my son has his "do it always" chores, and the "do these too and the pig is fed," (better known as extra moolah is yours.)"

Let me retrace a bit...

He started around the age of 2 with very simple ones. Brush teeth, take a bath, pick up toys, and help empty small wastebaskets. Around 3 he was helping to set the table. Then helping to load/unload the dishwasher. I did say "help," I was there with him, teaching him the names for silverware, having him hand me this and that and working with him. Lead by example- if I'm not willing to do something, why in the world should I expect him to do it also?

When he was 6 he decided he wanted a dog. This increased the normal chores to include 30 minutes of dog play, and being a pooper-scooper. His chores at that time included: emptying trash into big trashcan, unloading dishes, brushing teeth, showering, picking up room, making bed, dog play, pooper-scooper, setting table and putting clothes away.

Now that I have this mini-man (he swears he is not a little boy, and realistically, he's practically a pre-teen, closer to 10 than 9) chores are DRASTICALLY different. He receives $2 a week. Yes, pretty minimal- he's not going to get rich from us- to do the following chores:

*Bodily functions (showering, teeth brushing, meds, lotioned, etc)
*Clean room (pick up toys, put books away as finished, clean off desk, reset alarms, etc)
*Set & clear table
*Make dinner twice a week (once on his own, supervised obviously, and once trying something new with help.)
*Do laundry- (his is on Mon's)
*Unload dishes
*Read for 30 minutes
*Dog time (30 minutes a day, pooper-scooper on Wed & Sat)
*Vacuum twice a week (Wed & Sat)
*1 hour of cleaning on Saturday.
*1 hour of outside cleaning (when weather permits: weeding, picking veggies, fruits, etc)

For that bonus money- 25cents per each, per time- he does:
*Dogtime, 15 minutes extra a day
*Load dishes, daily
*Take care of his bathroom, weekly (this is $1: toilet, shower, sink, floor)
*Read for 30 minutes extra daily

I applaud my mom for teaching me a good work ethic. It's come in handy so many times in my life. I only hope that when my own child is an adult he will think the same about his momma.

Allergies are NO fun.

Allergy testing has been in our life for about as long as I've been blessed with my son. Just recently he had his 4th allergy testing yesterday. He wanted to document it- he's loving being on video- if you would like to see his "documentary" please let me know and I'll send you the link.

We are 6 years past his first "official" allergy test. So dealing with allergies isn't a big deal. The big deals come from new teachers (schools tend to freak out too), new wards, friends, parents, and all the "others" who are or will be in N's life. They see this as new, fresh, and quite frankly sad. However, for our family- it's normal. It is what it is, and N has held up very well with being unique.

I have never pushed to have N do allergy shots. I am very much for modern medicine, however I am not for meds so much. This, I've found, is a huge subject when we move somewhere. But, for my child I've decided that we will wait til he's approx 12, and then it will be his choice if he would like to get shots a couple times a week.

N's big problem with his allergies, is that he's so different from many of his classmates. He's the kid who carries meds on him at all times (Inhaler & an epi pen.) He's the kid who can't play with balloons and has his own band aids. He's the kid who brings his lunch- even when he eats at school. It wasn't such an issue before, but being in 3rd grade- kids ask more questions. Mrs H, his teacher, helped us with that- unknown to her at the time.

N was picked as a very special person of the week around his birthday. One of the projects was to write a book as a family. Could be on whatever we wanted. So, we did ours on his allergies. It took a fun spin- with his doc being a needle (his name was Doctor Needlehead- so guess what he looked like) and N being a super hero. The day that he read his book in class I played hooky for 20 minutes from my class and listened in. They had a question & answer period, and I was impressed with how the kids handled everything. N came home and told me that it was a great day- because finally, they got it.

It's hard for people to understand what's going on in some one's life with allergies. Not so much with adults, but with children- who wants to be different? Sometimes we have to battle over whether or not he wants to take all his meds, and sometimes he comes home sad because he was teased by a kid who didn't get it.

It's a learning lesson for all of us... one that will effect our lives each and every day. But it's not a horrible sentence- it's just a new experience to work out.

Below is the last batch of testing- just this month.

This, above, is him immediately after the pricking.

This is him 2 minutes after test.

7 mins after test.

15 minutes, full testing, right before Nurse A read & measured.

As you can see, the test wasn't loads of things- very unlike his past testings. This time they did a short panel, and my kiddo held up pretty well. He was more concerned with making his video, and letting me know when the stop watch said it was time to take another picture.

Testing notes:
*He's not allergic to cows, horses or guinea pigs. He asked to be tested for the GP, because he's decided that would be a cool pet to have.
*He's crazy highly allergic to soy.
*He tested positive for an allergy to corn-- it's his favorite food... so we'll just shrug that off.
*He tested negative this time for carrots, bananas, peaches & strawberries, so we'll reintroduce them, and see how it goes.
*We came home with a whopping 6 prescriptions. Most are ones we've had all along, but now with a different signature, 2 news ones.
*They didn't mention allergy shots (YAY!!!!!!!!) which makes me happy. I want him to wait till he's 11 or 12. Nurse A, said I was a good momma, because that's when it should be started because of the numbers of positive reactions.

Fear Factor Birthday Party

As the mother of an only child (not by choice, but a fact none the less), I get many chances to do a little bit more than normal every once in awhile. Birthday's are a big "wow" moment for us. His most favorite party was when he turned 7, we had a "FEAR FACTOR party."

The birthday invitations were made to look like the black & yellow "sign" they used on their show. Inside it had a parental consent form (more for fun, but also asked about food allergies, had they ever appeared on tv, etc, etc. And let them know to not wear their best clothes.) RSVP's were a must- and every single one of the 9 kids we invited called & showed up!

To prepare for the party we made team shirts (tie-dyed them red & yellow,) came up with ideas for the obstacle course, games, and bought supplies for the cake & games, plus prizes! The night before we boiled a HUGE pot (used my canning pot) of spaghetti noodles and let them sit overnight. Washed out the kitty litter pans, made food for games, and baked the cakes.

The morning of the party (started at 1pm) my son's father & stepmom arrived to help out. We decorated the inside with black & yellow streamers and table clothes. The front porch also had black streamers with a sign on the door that said: "Enter only if 'Fear is not a Factor.'" The guys built the obstacle course up in the back yard, along with a poster to show team standings.

Once all the kids arrived, we sat them up in the living room with a large black trashbag. The birthday boy was masked and I sent a child to him, and he would draw a shirt out of the bag- this decided which team everyone was on. Must nicer than him having to pick from all his friends and hurting feelings! Plus the shirts were oversizes- to protect their clothes!

Games included lots of eating! We had bird eggs (canned new potatoes, GAG!!!), Monkey eyeballs & brains (green olives in grape jello), Monster blood drink (raspberry shert & gingerale with oranges/raspberries in it- blended well.) We had a balance beam that was about 4 feet tall (the guys held the hands of those who needed it, and were there to catch if they fell.) There was also an egg toss.

The obstacle course was also run in teams. They started by digging in dirt (sand box) to find a flag, crawled thru 2 tires, and jumped in our boat (had a ladder tied to it for them to get up easier) to get another flag out of the box on a chair. Then the balance beam again, and at the end was 2 big bowls of noodles (those nasty sitting over night noodles- we left what water was in them still there- NASTY!) In those noodles were ants, spiders, lizards, and a single dinosaur (all plastic), finding the dinosaur gave them 5 points, all the others were a point each. They were blindfolded to do this, and had to stick their hands in the bowls to find them. They each got 30 seconds- and then the next person would run the course. Since most of the parents stayed to see this- there was a LOT of cheering going on!!!

The winning team, most points, got first dibs at the prize packages. The prizes were inside treasure chests we'd gotten at Craft Warehouse (a Michael's type store) and decorated. Goodies were gold coins, and other party type goodies. The tag said "Obviously, fear is not a factor for you!"

The cake was probably the best & worst party of the party. We made a kitty litter cake. You should have seen the faces on these 6 & 7 year olds!! It was served with fudge swirled ice cream. The kids were much more excited to eat it than the adults were!!! But, despite the look, it tasted WONDERFUL!!!! There was nothing left of it either! Like I said, it tasted wonderful!

We then opened presents, thanked everyone, and discussed the party. My son exclaimed it was the best party he ever had or been to. Now, 2 years later, we no longer live in Boise, and because of this he's decided that for his 10th birthday, in the fall, he wants to have it again! My thoughts-- you can certainly do much more nasty stuff with 10 year olds!! :)

KITTY LITTER CAKE

CAKE INGREDIENTS:
*1 box spice or German chocolate cake mix

*1 box of white cake mix

*1 package white sandwich cookies

*1 large package vanilla instant pudding mix with a few drops of green food coloring.

*12 (or so) small Tootsie Rolls or equivalent

SERVING "DISHES AND UTENSILS":
*1 NEW cat-litter box

*1 NEW cat-litter box liner (not needed, but if you want it...)

*1 NEW pooper scooper

INSTRUCTIONS:

*Prepare and bake cake mixes, according to directions, in any size pan.

*Prepare pudding and chill.

*Crumble cookies in small batches in blender or food processor (I let my son bash them up insde a baggie with a hammer- had a ball!) Add a few drops of green food coloring to approx. 1 cup of cookie crumbs. Mix with a fork or shake in a jar. Set aside.

*Once cakes are at room temperature, crumble them into a large bowl.

*Toss with half of the remaining cookie crumbs and enough pudding to make the mixture moist but not soggy. Place liner (like I said, not needed- I just put ours straigh in the litter box) in litter box and pour in mixture.

*Unwrap a couple Tootsie Rolls and heat in a microwave until soft and pliable. Shape the blunt ends into slightly curved points. Repeat with a few more rolls. Bury the rolls decoratively in the cake mixture.

*Sprinkle remaining white cookie crumbs over the mixture, then scatter green crumbs lightly over top.

*Heat 5 more Tootsie Rolls until almost melted. Scrape them on top of the cake and sprinkle with crumbs from the litter box. Heat the remaining Tootsie Roll until pliable and hang it over the edge of the box.

*Place box on a sheet of newspaper and serve with scooper.

Enjoy!

Mrs. Jekyll and Mommy Hyde

I emerged today from a brief shopping trip to our local discount store with my two youngest children. I don’t know if it was the crisp January breeze or the promise of that elusive sun beginning to peek out from some clouds, but it occurred to me how great the day had been. I realized that I had calmly managed to get all 3 children out to the car for the quarter-mile drive to the bus stop earlier this morning, serenely prepared a dish to deliver to our monthly recipe club, and patiently gotten through a store that normally reduces my children to little beggars and turns me into a raging monster.

These are the good days, the days when I can’t keep my hands away from my girls’ rosy cheeks or my boy’s close-cropped hair and I feel so proud and grateful to be their mother. I love these days. These are how my daydreams of motherhood looked. Once, during one of these cherished moments, I was driving to a park on a gorgeous day with my toddler in the back. I could not resist the urge to call my husband, who was at work, to let him know how much I appreciated his sacrifice to our family so that I had the freedom to stay at home with our children.

Regrettably, all too often, there is another kind of day: a day when I seem to wake up screaming and continue to be loud, irritable, impatient, and unsympathetic with my three cherubic little angels. In all fairness, children have their good days and bad as well, and though I must take responsibility for any inappropriate behavior or poor examples that I may exhibit, children certainly know how to push the limits of faith and goodwill.

While I would like to discover a potion that would enable me to be rid of Mommy Hyde forever, I would like to offer a toast to Mrs. Jekyll. May she always be able to awaken to the coaxing of her little ones at the crack of dawn with a smile on her face; may her endeavors to prepare an endless parade of breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner fill her with a bountiful joy; may the sight of a mountain of laundry inspire her to give thanks for her many blessings; and may she always remember the expressions on the faces of her progeny as they gaze at her with absolute trust and unconditional love.

Jennifer Tankersley is the creator of List Mama Blog: Lists of Lists for List-Lovin’ Mamas and ListPlanIt.com where you can find 250 lists and planning pages including cleaning schedules, daily to do lists, grocery lists, and holiday/party planning to put your world in order.

Welcome to the Club!

There is this club called motherhood. Before you join the club, you are told only the barest of details. This clubs stands as a secret sorority of women to all young girls. As girls mature and come closer to meeting the requirements of initiation into this club (pregnancy or beginning the adoption process), members begin to share some of the highlights of belonging: possible pain at birth (but there are drugs for that), some sleepless nights (but they don’t last long), diapers to change (but that is a bonding time for mom and baby). While all of that may be true, inductees may still feel blindsided once they are full-fledged members. This club is exclusive. Only members of the female sex may have the privilege of being called a mother, so mothers yearn for the day when friends, sisters, and even daughters accept the challenge of motherhood and have children of their own. It is not just new members to this club that can feel somewhat betrayed by those who have gone before. There seems to be a tier-system established where little information is release for fear that potential members may decide they have gone far enough. For example, a rather new member who has a 10-month-old baby might have appreciated being let in on the secrets of giving up one’s own self to the cries and whims of an all-consuming (albeit cute and lovable) little being. When she learns she is going to advance to the second tier, she is confident that she now knows how to take care of a baby. Little does she know that this tier can be even more challenging because she now has to divide every bit of time and energy between the demands of a newborn and even greater demands of a toddler or preschooler. Sadly, because of the fear that friends, sisters, or daughters may not pursue advancement if they learn of the difficulties facing them, long-standing members withhold useful information and new moms are left wondering why nobody told them it would be this hard. Maybe our gender has come to the realization that a warning would serve little to no purpose. Women have a strong internal predisposition to nurturing a child of our own and most women who join the club of motherhood would not resign their position or turn back time for anything. Most mothers are fully prepared to tackle the demands and challenges even without having been properly tutored. Of course, it may not be long before a new member has an opportunity to talk to a potential member about her involvement in the club. What will she say? “I love it! And you will, too!”

Jennifer Tankersley is the creator of List Mama Blog: Lists of Lists for List-Lovin’ Mamas and ListPlanIt.com where you can find 250 lists and planning pages including cleaning schedules, daily to do lists, grocery lists, and holiday/party planning to put your world in order.

Thinking Other Moms Homes Are Neater Than Yours

Do you ever visit other moms’ homes and wonder how they keep it so neat? Do you ever sit around in your own home with toys strewn over the floor, laundry piles (both clean and dirty) beckoning for attention, and three meals worth of dishes stacked next to the sink and wonder why you are the only mom on the planet who cannot keep up with her home? If you answered yes to either of these questions, then you may be suffering from “TOMHANTY” Syndrome (Thinking Other Moms’ Homes Are Neater Than Yours). The symptoms of this terrible disease are guilt, envy, stress, and even withdrawal (did I mention guilt?). You look around as you walk from room to room wondering how it could have gotten so messy since yesterday. You believe that the new friend you just made from your weekly visit to the library could never let her house look like a tornado just went through it. You are sure that your friend whose house you visit occasionally for a scheduled playgroup would never have dust bunnies the size of . . .well, a bunny.

Welcome to the Real Moms Club, where it is not just about being a mom, but being real and knowing that you don’t have to be a perfect housekeeper. Maybe in the days of our grandmothers when society said that kids could roam unsupervised and free around town, but a mom’s house was a reflection of who she was as a woman. Today, there is a different set of priorities for many moms, and a perfect house is not usually the highest on the list, although we still imagine we are being judged on everything from how we raise our children to how much education we pursue to how great a job we land and finally to how tidy we keep house. Moms of today are stretched and pulled in many directions. Life is rarely as simple as a clean house. Stop telling yourself that you are not a good mom because your house is not always as neat as you think other moms’ homes are. Most moms are struggling to keep up as well. What is the cure to TOMHANTY Syndrome, you ask? Well, you could drop by a friend’s house unannounced with the pretext of delivering some home-baked cookies; you could watch her face turn beet red with shame as she turns to survey the wreck of toys, laundry, and dishes behind her; you could listen to her offer up every reason why her house is in such disarray; or maybe you could just take me at my word when I say that you are not alone. Release your guilt by making a list of what you DID accomplish today: got kids dressed, dropped kids off at school and picked kids up after, washed and folded a load of laundry, paid bills, took dog to vet, fed family for the day. It all counts toward making your house a home in which your family can grow and feel loved.

Jennifer Tankersley is the creator of List Mama Blog: Lists of Lists for List-Lovin’ Mamas and ListPlanIt.com where you can find 250 lists and planning pages including cleaning schedules, daily to do lists, grocery lists, and holiday/party planning to put your world in order.