My Kid Made Dinner!

DD1 is getting old enough to do more advanced life skillz cooking. So I decided to teach her how to make a pot pie. I made one along side of her so that I could demonstrate with mine and then she could practice on hers. Then we baked hers for dinner and froze mine. Here is our training session....

It was pretty tough to stir all the ingredients because the mixed veggies were frozen (and it was a double batch). So she posed with a "this is SO hard" face. I think it looks like she thinks the filling is disgusting. Either way, we had a really great laugh and were silly the rest of the time. SO FUN!!

Fun is very important during these trainings. It builds great memories and helps them to love that skill.

Yes, we used ready-made pie crust. DH is a pie crust purist and thinks it's a waste of money. I say, let them make $2 off of me. SO WORTH IT. Plus I needed it to be easy for the training. Here she is stretching the crust to fit the pie plate well and then pushing it into the edges.

Filling in...

Putting on top crust. Lookin' good so far!

The importance of venting the top. This is where our family loves to write messages on top. She wrote, "Manga! My first time." (DH usually writes love notes to me and I to him. The kiddos LOVE that.)

She didn't realize that she needed to vent the entire top of the pie, so we added a few other holes. But that is what these training sessions are for. The next time, she will know that her lettering needs to take up the whole top.

For the cooking she learned how/when to put the crust ring on and how to tell when it is done. I did all the oven work because she didn't feel comfortable yet. I demonstrated/taught this time. next time she will do it. I think it is BEAUTIFUL, it was delicious, and I am so proud of her. Great job DD1!!

Meet My New Ride

Last week, this rolled into our neighborhood. I jokingly thought, "Wow! That is exactly what I need to cart around my big family and all our stuff now." My true feeling is, "WHY in the world does someone need this kind of rig?" I was very curious....

A closer look at the truck. Look how little that guy looks (and he wasn't a little man. :)

This is what they were here to pick up - a little tiny scooter. But now remember how HUGE that trailer is? It should be no problem to find a place, right? Well look at the next photo...

They had to EMPTY stuff out to fit it in!!! This whole trailer was stuffed!

I was going to give my opinion on this, but I would LOVE to hear what you all think about it or what you (our your DHs) would do with it.

Five Below Challenge

Yeah!! It is the end of the month! Here is a fun activity when funds are low...This is what we call the Five Below, Five Dollar, Five Minute Challenge.

Purpose: To help DDs learn to make decisions quickly. (And to get out of the house :)

DDs1 and 2 went in with a timer set for 5 minutes. They pressed start once they entered the doors. They only had five minutes to decide what they wanted to buy (with their money of course). I stayed in the car with the other 3 kiddos. Here is the before:


Here is the after....

It was really fun!! I thought it would be a great b-day activity too. Just give everyone 5 dollars to go buy themselves whatever they want (or a present for the b-day kid).

Can You See What I'm Saying?

I do A LOT of parenting with my face - especially my eyes. Here is what they say...

The above picture is my classic raised eyebrow. When my girls see this it means, "You better rethink what you are doing/saying." It is nice to have this, because I can parent without saying a word. (I feel like I talk ALL DAY LONG!)

Another BEAUTIFUL tool is what I call the "Look me in the eye" technique. I got really tired of repeating myself over and over, and the girls ignoring me. Now I say, "Look me in the eye." When they are looking at me I know they are listening. I usually ask them to repeat what I said so I know they understand, or they have to say, "Yes mom" to signal that they are going to obey. (That sounds so dictator-like doesn't it?)

The last is when they are whining about anything, eg. work, no candy, playtime, screen time, etc. I point to my face (or my raised eyebrow) and say, "Does this face look like it is going to change it's mind?" They answer, "no" then I say, "Stop asking then, or you will get a mood." (see how it all fits together?)

The hilarious thing about all of this is that the DDs have eyebrow lifting contests to see who can do this look the best. It is really funny to watch, and I give them pointers too.

What do your eyes say?

72 hr. kits - Shelter

I just ordered tarps, from Walmart.com. It was the Foremost tarp 5'x7' for $1.99 plus shipping. I ordered 7 and it came to around $24 with the shipping. I ordered this size and weight because it seemed big enough that I could wrap up in it (I'm almost 6 feet tall) and still small enough to fit into our packs.

One of the most important things to have is shelter in an emergency. Tarps are great because they are water proof, cut the wind, and keep in heat. They are better to have than the emergency blankets. (We've heard those are junk. Thank you for the tip Kellen.)

I am also getting together the 2 tents we own for the family pack. I'll post a pick when the tarps come.

Watch Your Tone

This is one I LOVE! In our house we have the rule that we don't yell at each other (parents included). It's okay to be frustrated but you aren't allowed to yell. If the kids start yelling, I just say, "Watch your tone" and they know it means they better try a different voice.

This is also really helpful when they start to talk back to me. (Why do some parents tolerate this?) I raise my eyebrow which means - you better rethink what you are doing. Then I say -with an edge in my voice - "Watch your tone. I'm your mother." They know they better try again.

How do you handle frustrations in your house?

Speed Cleanin' - The Tools

I have been so excited to do this post - I hope you have been too. What I am about to show you has completely changed my cleaning life! Let me introduce you to the tools of Speed Cleaning.

First and most important is the apron. This has four pockets that carry all the tools that you will need as you clean. One carries cleaning cloths (or white cloth dinner napkins). Second, holds a plastic non-scratch scraper (for caked on messes), a razor blade holder (for paint and tape) and a toothbrush. The bottom ones are lined with Gallon Ziploc bags that are held - just on the front flap of the bag- by heavy duty paper clips. One is used to hold a non scratch sponge and the other is for garbage. The apron also has two loops that are for holding two cleaners, an all purpose grease cutter, and a glass cleaner.

One of the keys to speed is to have only a few cleaners. A tote is also necessary for ease of transport and to keep the cleaners together so you don't waste time hunting the house for them. So frustrating! Here is furniture polish and dust cloth, Red Juice (all purpose, non-toxic, which means no rinsing), shower cleaner, comet for kitchen sink shine, and windex.

The other tools are a heavy duty scrub brush (I have only found this through The Clean Team website), a duster (either swiffer or ostrich feather), a little hand broom.

Now, here to model them for you is....my DH! (It takes a real man to model a pink apron:). Notice how the two cleaners hang from the loops? Also notice the clips to hold the baggies. I use the spaces behind the baggies to place small items that need to be put away. This makes it SO easy to put all the kids' small toys back in their place. It also saves me from treking around the house over and over. Time savers - that is what makes this system ROCK!

Easy -and fast- to pull the cleaners out of the loops. He thinks he's fast, but we both know I am faster.;)

In the back you tuck the duster into the apron strap to keep it handy. And the hand broom in a back pocket. This is handy to sweep under the couch cushions or the seal on the fridge. Oh, I love it when that is clean!

Can you tell that the key to this is having every possible tool you need on you? Then you only need to work your way around a room once. No walking back and forth to get stuff!

If you are going to clean like this, you have to have these tools. You can try to modify a cooking apron, but it isn't worth it. I suggest just buying the apron, scrub brush, and Red Juice from http://www.thecleanteam.com/. The other things you can pick up other places. Or you can order a kit already put together from them. Oh, and one more thing, look at their sh-mop. That is important too, but I forgot to take pictures of that.

Get your tools together and stay tuned for the method...