Fall Art

I have taken Thursdays as a sort-of "no housework" day to do things with the kids. Ellie doesn't have school, and we don't have a sitter or any daytime activities.
So today, since it was one of the first actually cool days in a while, I was thinking fall.
I remembered this pin that I saw HERE Yes, it is in Italian, but it doesn't really require detailed instruction.
My kids are 4 and 2, so our projects didn't turn out quite so nice, but the kids had fun and it was an easy project.
As an added bonus, I also got to use my favorite toy- my Silhouette Cameo!
I found an image of trees, and selected out just the branches to cut out, enlarged it so that two would fit on a piece of construction paper (construction paper does not fair the best in a silhouette- it tore a little, and I had to do a bit of trimming with scissors- I think it is just too fragile, I set the blade to 2)
Then I pasted the bare trees to blue construction paper, set the kids up with finger paint and q-tips, and let them at it.
Here is the result:

I actually think that Ellie's turned out pretty cute- she is very orderly, and did each branch a separate color, then switched to brushes so that she could do clouds and a sun (which of course Greg then wanted to do as well!) Ellie also insisted on a sticker- in school, they generally get a stamp or a sticker on all their work. 

We have been working on her writing her name, so I generally have her write it on everything she does! 

The Butter(cream) Battle

I have been searching for the perfect icing recipe. As cupcakes go, I have pretty good luck with using a box mix (or an almost-home-made recipe- I really like the box cake plus egg whites and soda) but I really don't like canned frosting.
I don't like the idea of buying cupcakes. Don't get me wrong, I love Cupcake a la Mode and Smallcakes. But paying $20-$40 per dozen for cupcakes for a 4 year old's party is a bit much. I mean, if the cupcakes got eaten, that would be one thing. But really, pre-schoolers tend to either lick off the frosting and toss the cake or take 2-3 bites and be done.
On the other hand, there will be parents at the party, and I would like the cupcakes to actually taste good.
Thus, my search. Pinterest has been quite helpful in this regard. I have tried 5 recipes total. Though I would like to try a cream cheese variant, I just don't have time before Saturday.
Here are the recipes that I tried.
1. Buttercream with flour
Ok, this recipe required cooking. On the stove. I can bake, but I really can't cook. That said, this frosting was HORRID. Not just a little bad, or too thick or thin or burned or something resulting from me using the stove. It was WAY too buttery. I ended up adding a bunch more powdered sugar just to keep from tasting like just butter. But then, it just tasted like a so-so buttercream.
2. Best Buttercream Frosting
This was not bad, a basic buttercream. It was too sweet for my taste. I didn't use cream (I didn't have any) but I used whole milk. despite the higher quantity of vanilla, this really just tasted like sugar.
3. Dream Frosting
The family was divided over this one. I made it, and the next two, all on one day, and compared them. I didn't ice any cupcakes or anything, just made small batches to test head-to-head. Bri-Guy liked this one the best. I think it looked really nice- it had a sort-of sheen to it that buttercream does not. I am not a huge fan of fluff, though. It was definitely lighter than buttercream, and had a marshmallow-y taste to it. The texture seemed a bit slick, almost slimy. It was not sticky, which surprised me. It didn't really firm up any more in the fridge, so if you make it, make sure to add enough sugar to pipe or whatever, because it won't thicken too much. Also, I just made vanilla. I doubled the amount of vanilla in it. Both the Fluff Frosting recipes I have seen have used added flavor- strawberry or almond, so maybe I would like those better, but I was looking for a basic vanilla.
4. Sprinkles Frosting
No, this does not have any sprinkles in it. I guess it came from some cupcake company that Oprah raved about, thus making them famous by default. This and the next were my favorites. This is a thick, buttery recipe. It has a pretty strong flavor, and would probably overwhelm ligher flavors of cake, like vanilla or strawberry. I think it would be really good on chocolate. When refrigerated, it firmed up pretty hard, much like a canned frosting. After sitting out again, it regained the soft consistency, so this one would be good for making ahead of time. I doubled the vanilla in this recipe, too.
5. Magnolia's Frosting
This is from a bakery somewhere, and I guess is not actually a buttercream, but a confectioner's sugar frosting. Other than proportions, I really don't know what sets them apart. This was a slightly lighter, sweeter frosting compared to Sprinkles. I could see this going really well on a lighter or flavored cake (like strawberry or lemon) I didn't use quite as much sugar as it called for, and doubled the vanilla (are you sensing a trend here?) This one firmed up some in the fridge, and would probably keep pretty well for a couple of days.
The photo at the top is of these last three frostings.
Some notes: I didn't use salt in any of these, instead I used salted butter. I generally put in more vanilla than called for in frosting, just my personal taste. I also really like using other flavorings- almond, lemon, orange, peppermint, and will try some of these at some point. When you make frosting, you really do need to let the butter get to room temperature. Melted butter just doesn't work, and if the butter is too firm, then you end up with little bits of butter, which no one really wants to taste!
So which one will I use? Well, despite the fact that the family (2 of the 3 who tried it- G-Man wouldn't taste any of them on the grounds that they were a new food we were trying to get him to eat, and baby B is too little to taste-test) liked the fluff frosting, since I am the one baking, I am going to use the Sprinkles Frosting. I am doing a chocolate cake, and think it will go well.

Girls and their Hairbows!

Another Pinterest Project...
I have been looking for a cute way to store all the girls' hairbows, and here it is!
A very simple project, using cardboard, fleece, fabric, tulle, ribbon, fake flowers, and A LOT of hot glue! This one took me probably 3-4 hours over two days, but that was because I was re-using tulle from a tutu that I made for my daughter (that she wore for pictures, ONCE and then refused to wear again because it was "itchy") So, I had to take apart the tutu. Takes longer than making one, I think!
So, you can find the tutorial HERE but basically, you cut out a form from cardboard, glue down a layer of fleece or quilt batting or something like that, glue down your top fabric (pull really tight here, and be careful on the curves to avoid wrinkles) glue on the criss-cross ribbons (if desired) glue bunches of tulle (you will need a lot. I tied mine in bunches of 6 strands) Glue on the ribbon that will hold the hairbows- you will want to use grossgrain ribbon, anything else and the hairbows will slide off. Then glue down the flowers to cover all that glue up! I finished with a flower on the shoulder (great for covering those wrinkles that you couldn't quite avoid) and gluing a solid piece of fleece on the back to cover up all the loose ends. I put it up using command strips, we will see how that holds up!
The pic on the left really shows the color better, on the right shows about 2/3 of the ribbons that we own. I have a bunch that I am saving for the second holder I am making for Baby B.
After I put most of the bows on and took the picture, I moved things around, and put all those plain clips that bend to snap on up on the top part, so that I could just hang them there and leave them open- much easier in the long run! I still need to figure out a good storage solution to the millions of headbands, ribbons and hair ties that are cluttering up the kitchen!

G-Man and the Answering Machine

Naptime today, and Bri-Guy and I hear the phone ring. I run to get it, but the machine picks up first. I hear the pre-set recording (despite having the machine for years, but have never recorded a message!) and then the computerized voice of CVS calling to inform me that I have a prescription to pick up.
Deciding that it isn't important, I turn back to what I was doing, about to tune out the machine, until I hear G-Man on the phone. It sounds like he is talking to the CVS recording, and Bri-Guy have a laugh about it. I am thinking that maybe I should give the phone to him the next time I have someone call me about a political campaign.
After a minute, I say, Shouldn't we go get G-Man off the phone?
Bri-Guy goes upstairs and then comes back down, perplexed. G-Man, apparently, is sound asleep.
Yup, though the answering machine is about 4.5 feet off the ground, in the office, behind the baby gate, G-Man has managed to record an outgoing message on our machine... something we haven't done in all the years that we have owned the thing.
I think I might just leave his recording on there for a while!

More Pinterest

Pre-School Photos

I wanted to try a pinterest photo shoot to document the kids' growth each school year. G-Man hasn't started school yet, but wanted in on the action!
I used a ladder to take the pics, and, of course, sidewalk chalk!
Just a tip- make sure that you are in the shade! I drew out the letters, then had to wait all day for the sun to be behind the house so that the sun wasn't right in Elf's face when she was laying on the ground!

Messy Playdate

I like Pinterest. Check that. I LOVE Pinterest. So much so that I have a board specifically for "just in case I should ever renew my vows and get to have another wedding."
I pin a lot of stuff, especially for my kids, or to do with my kids. And I really do try to actually DO some of the stuff that I pin.
My biggest success was a Messy Playdate.
Quite simple- I found a bunch of messy play/sensory activities, and set them all up on the patio so that the kids could play.
This is what I included: Paint (which I made), Shaving Cream, Water Beads, Dirt, Sand, and a Baby Pool of Bubble Bath.
Other than the sand, I found all these ideas on Pinterest. I also tried to make bubbles, using two different recipes, but failed. We have hard water, so it might have been that. I got the dirt from the hardware store, the shaving cream from the dollar store, the water beads from the floral department at an arts and crafts store. (the bubble bath was from the grocery, I think, it is what I had on hand) All told, I think I spent $10 to set this up. I didn't have to buy any containers or pools or anything, though- I used the baby pools and water tables that I already had.

And here are some during/after. I would say that the kids had fun!

Teacher Mom

Sometimes, you don't need Pinterest. You just need initiative, construction paper, and a pre-schooler with a really bad attitude. A little experience in the classroom doesn't hurt, either!

We have been having a lot of trouble with our soon-to-be four year old. My solution was a behavior chart. I did a web search, but couldn't really find anything that I liked.

Here is what I came up with- it looks complicated, but really isn't. My daughter grasped the idea pretty quickly, we will see how well it works once the novelty wears off. I think it will work pretty well, as it is based on a system that I have used or seen used in several schools at various grade levels.

Basically, she has periods of time (wake up- snack, snack- lunch, after nap-dinner, dinner-bed time, with meals and bed-time being separate periods due to having particular problems at these times) and her behavior is rated. Great behavior (green card) is rewarded, and bad behavior (red and black cards) are punished. She can buy rewards with her good behavior (such as extra TV time, special activities or treats, privileges,  etc. I tried to keep it from being too materialistic, just because I don't want to have to buy a bunch of stuff, and we already have too much crap in the house!)

After a really bad evening, which involved losing both story and TV time, she has already asked me to take away her black cards, and was happy this morning when her chart was blank again. 

A little on making this: I used construction paper, packing tape, and sharpie. I didn't use a ruler or a paper cutter (though I did wish that I had access to a laminating machine!) 

Poop-tastrophy

I have 3 kids, only one of whom is nominally potty trained. So I deal with a lot of poop. Literally and figuratively. Just stop here if you don't want to hear about real poop.
All of my kids are/were cloth diapered. 99% of the time I love that. I don't have issues with the poop (or at least any that I wouldn't also have with disposables) and I don't mind the laundry too much.
Today, though, was one of the 1%.
Came home to a poopy diaper that my mom left for me to rinse. No big deal...will deal with that later. Needed to start dinner. Bee is screaming. Try to feed her. Notice an ominous smell and realize she is not hungry. I should mention here that both of my diapered kids are teething, which makes the diapers that much worse. Put Bee down and start to change her.Not the worst ever, the diaper contained the poop. As I am getting her cleaned up, G-man starts screaming. I turn to see what is wrong. It takes me a moment to comprehend what I ask seeing. Then I realize... That its poop in his hand. From his sister's diaper.
I kept it together enough to make sure that Bee had on a clean diaper before taking G-man up to the bath. Carefully. He still got poop on his shirt and the outside of his diaper. I quickly decide that putting him in the tub first then undressing him would be the best route. G-man disagrees. There its now poop all over the side of the tub. Get to his diaper, and realize G-man is poopy, too. Teething poopy. I forgo the bath at this point and just go for the hand held sprayer. Thank goodness CPS didn't walk in. G-man slips, is laying in the tub screaming. Bee and Elf are downstairs unattended also screaming. There is poop on the carpet and the tub. There are three poopy diapers in the bathroom sink. Dinner didn't get made.
Oh, and as soon as I finish spraying off G-man, he pees. But no biggy. He is still standing in the tub.

spraypaint

Just a few things that I have made lately:
A sign for the front door. Ok, I didn't make the sign, I just painted it. Got it at JoAnns (I think) but wanted it to pop a little more. Clear coated it with spray paint so that it would stay nice outside.

I didn't make these cool Subway Art signs, my friend Sarah did (she is LaLa Creates on Facebook!) But I did spraypaint the mats! I couldn't find pink mats at the craft store, but luckily, spraypaint comes in all colors! So... I just painted the mats! I was really impressed that the spraypaint that I randomly picked out matches the color of the walls almost exactly! Yup, I am that good!

I didn't spray paint my son's, but I really like it, so I added that one, too!

Blue Jacket Park

This was another one of our impromptu park trips- we were headed for Wonderscope, but I didn't realize that it was closed on Mondays! Luckily, Old Town Shawnee has a lot to offer, including this cute little park that happens to be right around the corner from Wonderscope (as well as Splash Cove, which is our favorite summer pool!)
This is a pretty standard playground- swings, slides, open space, tennis courts, etc. But the one cool thing is that there are musical instruments on the underside of the structure- like where they would normally put a window, or a steering wheel, there are chimes and what is sort of like a little piano.
The kids have a good time here, parking is really close to the playground, and it is really convenient for a lot of trips that we make!

knotty dresses (and a tie shirt)

  
I really enjoy making clothes for my kids, so I thought that I would share a couple of pictures. I have this really bad habit of seeing something that is really expensive, and rather than just appreciating the time that goes into it (not to mention the cost of materials) I think, "Gee, I could make that." And then the craziness begins.
Here are two things that I actually DID manage to make myself.
The knotty, or apron dress- found a pattern for this on Etsy, there are a few. This is a pretty easy dress to make- You need about a yard of the skirt color, maybe 1/2 a yard for the bodice (less if you make the lining out of a different material) and about a fat quarter for the apron. The pattern calls for a little more for the apron, but for the butterfly dress, that is what I had, and I think it worked fine. You can also modify the pattern to use up lots of scraps by cutting stripes for the skirt. It can ben made with or without the apron, and the straps could tie at the shoulder, snap, button or knot, like I did mine. I think that I made the skirt a little long on the easter dress, but that is a small point!

I have seen many of these shirts around that have ties on them, and thought that they were probably pretty easy to make. This is the second one that I have made, but by far better than my first! I just used a hanes undershirt for the tee, that is just what I had on hand, a regular weight tee shirt would have worked better. However, I sometimes find it hard to find solid color, no pocket shirts. I can't remember where I got the tie pattern- I probably just searched google images. Traced it onto some double sided fusing, cut out the shape, ironed it onto the tie fabric, then cut it out. Ironed it onto the shirt, then just did a straight stitch around the edge. The tie is one piece, I sewed a line to differentiate the top "knot" part from the rest. A zig zag stitch works really well too, especially if you have a fabric that is more prone to fraying. I personally don't mind if it frays a bit, and usually if you get good fusing, it will work like an iron-on, and you don't have to worry too much about it.

West Flanders Park

West Flanders Park is located in Shawnee on the NE corner of 55th and Neiman. It is a big park, with a nice shelter and lots of green space. My kids like this park because it is designed to look sort of like a castle. There is one large structure and two small structures, which are connected to the larger one via a bridge and monkey bars. There are also a few animals to ride on and some swings.
We had an easter egg hunt at this park, the large space was great for it!
The playground is set a little ways from the parking lot, which means that I have to bring a stroller even if I only have my older two kids. Not a big issue, but you definitely can't just park and let the kids run right up to the structure.
Lots of trees and shade here.

Taming Pony Hair!

 I have a 3yo girl, which means we have a lot of dolls. And even more ponies. This also means a lot of synthetic hair. My daughter does not really seem bothered by the unkempt nature of her toys, but for some reason, it annoys the crap out of me. So, with a little help from Google and Pinterest, I thought that I would find a way to detangle all that hair.
First thing that you need to know is that doll hair is essentially plastic. This means that you really do need special tools to tame it. And I am not talking about those teeny little plastic combs that come with each and every pony! I used a doll brush, I think that it came with my American Girl ages ago. You can also use a wig brush, which is fairly easy to pick up at any beauty supply store. You want a metal brush that does not have the little plastic balls on the ends.
First thing that I tried was regular detangler, the same kind that I use on my kids. This worked ok, but not great. Pinterest suggested fabric softener. I used 1 part softener to 2 parts water. This really worked pretty well. I put it in an extra spray bottle and used it just like detangler. It really worked the best on the ponies. In the pictures, you can see before and after pictures. These were two of the worst- The one on the left was one from when I was a kid, and had probably never seen a brush. I don't know if it originally came with such short hair or it got cut at some point! The one on the right is Pinky Pie, one of my daughter's favorites. After spraying and bushing (from the ends, just like any hair) I wrapped the hair around my fingers and twisted it up to re-curl it. Some of the ponies hair turned out more curly than others, I don't know if this is due to what the hair originally looked like or what. I am still experimenting with that. The hair turned out really smooth, and my only complaint is that it is sort of slick, but I think that might go away over a bit of time. If I put too much solution in their hair, it started looking greasy.
For the American Girl, I really found that just using a brush is all you need if the hair is in relatively good shape. I used the fabric softener solution on Molly, since she has probably never had a good brushing, and I got her in 2nd grade! It took a little time to get her hair looking good!
For larger dolls, my best advice is that once you get their hair untangled, braid it or put it in pigtails, or else it will be a mess again in a matter of days!

Hobbies

Lately I have ben thinking a lot about hobbies. Specifically, what defines a hobby? I generally think of a hobby as something that one does in their free time that they enjoy doing. I have very little free time, so you would think that my hobbies would b fairly obvious, but I am not sure that is the case.
Here are some of the things I do that I don't have to do, thus making them canidates for hobbies: knitting, sewing, gardening, home improvement, reading, other crafts, shopping, going to garage sales and thrift shops...
I have found, with some of these things, that it isn't the doing that I enjoy, but the outcome. This is especially true with home improvement, gardening, and sometimes crafting. I don't really enjoy stripping wallpaper, sanding, painting, digging, transplanting, watering, etc (though tiling is actually sort of fun!) Even sewing and knitting gets to be a means to an ends with big projects. So does this mean that they aren't hobbies? I mean, they aren't chores. They are things that I do that I choose to do, not that I have to do.
If it really came down to it, if hobbies are only about immediate enjoyment, then I would have very few hobbies indeed! Shopping (not for groceries and stuff), reading, and, one of my major activities that is definitely NOT a hobby- playing with my kids- would be the only things that fit the definition.
Just my thoughts for the day! 

A sweater for baby girl

I got this yarn last summer, intending to knit a sweater for our then unborn baby. I got yellow since we didn't know the gender of the baby, and I figured that I could embellish the sweater after the baby was born.
Well, baby girl was born 3 weeks early, so I didn't get to knit the newborn sweater. Instead, I decided to make her a light-weight cardigan for Easter.
I used this pattern that I found on Ravelry, and just used a single button instead of the ties. (I had planned on using three small buttons had our baby been a boy)
It fits really nicely, and was a pretty quick project. I used a cotton blend baby yarn that I got at our local yarn store. No seams, except the top of the hood (which I love, I totally hate having to seam in sleeves, especially on such a tiny project) The hood has a cute little point at the back, but my model was not being cooperative, and the oldest person around to hold her was 3!

Gum Springs Park

Located just east of Quivera on 67th St, this park isn't on Google maps or on my Garmin. This is a pretty nice playground- it is designed to look sort-of like a fort or log cabin. The kids really like the slides at this park. There are also swings, a shelter, several soccer fields, a baseball diamond and restrooms (which are closed during the winter months, just like all the other parks in the area).

Going on a weekend, there were older (probably middle or high school) kids there when we got there, but they pretty much stayed out of the way of the kids. There are quite a few yards that back up to the park, and we were the only people at the playground that didn't bike or walk there.

Antioch Park

This one is particularly nostalgic for me. I used to play at Antioch Park when I was a kid, so, about a million years ago. You know, back when playground equipment was cool and metal and dangerous. When they had a huge metal rocket slide that would burn you in the summer, and one of those metal spinning merry go rounds that you could get going really fast. When they had the concrete pipes to crawl through, and the houses in the play town were two story. But I digress. This is still one of the best parks around.
Antioch Park has a lake, fishing, stepping stones to walk across, two playgrounds, a small old west town, and swings. The shelter by the playground is big and nice. There are plenty of really nice walking trails, including a paved path around the lake.
The larger of the two playgrounds has two separate structures, as well as a climbing rock. One of the structures is geared toward older kids, the other younger kids. There is rope netting to climb on, and some big slides. The playground is on that soft recycled rubbery ground covering. While the playground is big, it is a pretty typical structure. There is a lot of seating, though, and shade.
The smaller of the two playgrounds is up the hill, next to the old west town. It is a slightly older playground structure, more suited for smaller kids. It has a dirt/woodchip base.
The old town consists of a bunch of small houses, each decorated to look like a different building- bank, inn, stables, town hall, jail (the jail has an "escape tunnel" which is pretty cute!) I remember the houses being two story, and a lot more fun, but my kids seem to enjoy them all the same.
The kids also really like walking here, and can go across the lake on step stones (they are very close together, my small 3 year old could manage on her own, but I insisted on her having help, so she didn't fall in the water in January!)
In addition the being a really nice all around park, there are several festivals that are held each year for free at Antioch Park. If you are looking for a destination park, or are planning a day of it, this is a great choice. The only down-side is that in the summer, or whenever school is out and the weather is warm, this park can get crowded. Not so much a problem if you have older kids, but the toddlers can sometimes get pushed around in the crowd when it is really busy.