Don't tell yourself

This kids were talking about my upcoming birthday this morning.

"Mom, your birthday is coming!"

"Mom, do you like it when we make you things?"

"Mom, we're making you something. But you're not supposed to know, so don't tell yourself!"

Handmade Gifts part 2: from Kids (to Adults)

Is it just me, or is it really hard to find things that kids can make and give to others that aren't pre-fabricated and expensive, or completely dorky?

I've had a hard time coming up with things that kids can make and give, anyway.

Just in case you have too, Here's a few things we've done in the past, and many of the ideas I hope to try in the future. They aren't all stellar, and none of these ideas are original with me. But I hope you like them anyway. I'm providing links to the projects where appropriate.

Oh, and another disclaimer, I tend to like gifts that are at least a little bit useful. So most of these aren't of the "refrigerator art" variety. Except the first one.

A year of kid art. Have one, or a few, of the kids make a new art project every month and mail it to the recipient. We did this for and aunt a few years back. She loved it, and still has all the ones we sent. Moreover, it provided a nice way to try new art projects without inviting a lot of clutter. It's also a nice way to let far away family know that you're thinking of them. I think we'll probably do it again.

Jewelry
Have you tried finger knitting? It's fun! Even the kids think it's fun! I can finger-knit a scarf in about an hour, but my oldest is only six, and definitely won't be sitting for an hour finger knitting (even if he was that fast). Instead, he's made a finger-knitted necklace and bracelet out of fancy yarn for his aunt. And that was really cute. Here's a good tutorial on 1-finger knitting, and another on 4-finger knitting (which is really better for kids over about 6 or 7).

Another easy popular craft around here is bangles. Cut a strip of a round plastic bottle (something big enough to go over your hand), and wrap fancy yarn around and around it. This is easy for kids above about 4, and really turns out cute! Kid's Craft Weekly has a good tutorial for these. And on the bracelets thread, my kids love to string beads pipe cleaners.


Stamping
Use apples, potatoes, carrots, sponges, cereal boxes folded into shapes, and whatever you can find as a stamp with acrylic paint to decorate hand towels, handkerchiefs, a tote bag, or just about anything. Might be kind of messy, but it's sure to be a big hit with both the kids and the lucky recipient, don't you think?

Nature gifts
Kids love to plant seeds, water them and watch them grow. It's a science lesson and a gift in one. Why have I not done this before? If I can find those seeds we never got around to planting last spring, we'll have a potted spice garden to give away. Thyme is supposed to be particularly easy, and sprouts quickly. We have some miniature basil just begging to be grown in a pot, and I'm wanting to try wheat grass too. Maybe we'll even decorate the pots with stickers or paint.

I also love these nature texture prints made from polymer clay. Or twig stars like these (I'm working on a tutorial for them now).

And maybe you'd like to consider some garden art.

Food
Don't forget the value of a good food gift. We often give away homemade jelly that the kids helped stir. Or give a Pie-in-a-jar, or a jar-mix for some favorite cookies. Or just make the cookies and give them away. Of mini-loaves of banana bread. These are school-lessons and gifts too -- all that measuring! Food is a great gift for men -- how could you go wrong?

Others
And one last one -- another great gift for a man is a stress-ball or hackey sack. The link I had for this has been deleted, but you basically take a balloon, use a funnel to fill it (without stretching the balloon much) with sand or flour or split peas or rice, whatever you have.... Then you tie the balloon and stuff the knot inside. Cut the neck off of a second balloon, and stuff the first one inside of this (if you used flour, don't cut the neck off, I hear it makes a very big mess). Then you repeat this -- cutting the neck off of a third and fourth balloon to make a rather strong ball. You can cut many holes in another balloon if you wish for decoration. Here's another way to make one.

No, wait, one more. You can re-cover a pillow to make just about anything. (Your kid could even draw a design on the fabric!).

Speaking of gifts for adults. I have one for you. It's a Mikasa ceramic Nativity. Brand new in the box. Keep it, or give it to someone without young kids who will destroy it :)

Just leave me a comment to enter. Contest ends November 1st, just like the others. Don't forget to tell me your email address in it!

Oh, and don't forget to read part 1 of this series: Handmade gifts for teenage boys.


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Doin' the Turkey Dance

We finally decided to let our kids attend a local church's halloween party.

That means that costumes are in order. Bennet insists on being a turkey. (If you know him, you're so not surprised). Apron Queen's Reviews is having a challenge which involves doing the chicken dance. You know where this is going....








Here's how we made this really last-minute costume:

Tail: A red and orange shirt, torn into strips and tied around a piece of elastic that then is pinned to orange shorts

Head: A piece cut from a red felted sweater and sewn into a curve above the face-hole (which was already ripped in the sweater. A felt beak sewed on, as well as a strip of red fabric for the over-the-beak thingy. A love red hanging-thingy out of the same sweater, just a long strip cut, sewed and turned. Google eyes glued on.

Wings: Two wing-like shapes cut from same felted sweater and pinned on to an orange tee shirt.

Legs: Red tights borrowed from the box for when Lisel gets older.

The great thing about pre-schoolers is that they don't mind (or know) if it's totally dorky!

I still have to make unicorn and kitty costumes for the girls. Matt will be lucky if he gets to dress up, it's a good thing he's too young to care!

Generousity: My Frugal Secret

People often ask me "How do you do it?" When I tell them that we've lived quite well for six years now on a single part-time income. Yep, that's half of an income. We've always just had one of us working part time. For the first few years it was Chester, and right now it's me who works part time.

I have a slew of answers.

• "Well, God just provides miraculously for us" (which He does)
• "It's really not hard, but we are careful with our money"
• "I have a really great paying part time job"
• "We don't have a TV - it's easy to live cheaply when you're not viewing ads all day long"

All of these are true. But there's another property that I think is at the core of our living cheaply. And that is generosity. God has called us to give both to our church and to several missionaries. But in addition to that, we're always giving stuff away.

Actually, it's not so much giving stuff away, as it is funneling what God sends to us. A few months ago now, I took two garbage bags of toddler girl clothes to a family who has quadruplet 3-year-old girls that needed clothes. This is not an unusual occurrence around here. That particular week, I'd had three families give me hand-me-downs from their girls. I didn't need clothes for my girls, and told them so. But I was very grateful that they thought of me, and told them I'd be happy to find them a good home.

God has allowed this sort of thing to happen so many times that "funneling" has become part of our reputation. (This also courtesy of my Mother-in-Law, who gives away so much every year that it totals a higher value than their income). Families that have a need know they can ask me, and I'll probably come across what they need in short order. Families with stuff to get rid of know they can call me. I'll use some, and pass on some.

I'm always grateful for what I'm given - even if I can't use it, I know that these people thought of us for a reason, and there's probably someone I know that can use it.

A couple of days ago, a local home-schooler emailed to ask if I wanted her outgrown curriculum. Her youngest is now in second grade -- they simply don't need the preschool and kindergarten stuff anymore. I said "Of course! We had such a fun time with the videos you gave us last time!" (Which was true, even though we don't have a VCR and she knows it -- we gave them as prizes at a party, and it was really fun).



So tonight on our weekly date we went and picked up a bag and a box of her old home-school stuff. Most of it we really don't need (although the kids are completely thrilled at all the new coloring books!) Therefore, I'd like to pass some on to you as today's giveaway. Six books: Usborne's "Ready for Reading", Celebrate Readings!'s "Spelling and Phonics Practice books" levels 1 and 2 (which I think correspond to grades 1 and 2, they are above my kindergartener), McGraw-Hill's "My 1,2,3"s, Modern Curriculum Press's "My dictionary Workbook", and American Education Publishing's "The complete Book of Phonics ( for ages 4-8)". Thanks so much Leeza! Just leave a comment or subscribe (and leave me a comment telling me that you did) to be entered. (Two entries if you do both). Please leave your email address in the comment if you don't have a blogger blog. Blogger does not share your email address with me.

I'm so grateful that God provides for us this way - it's completely fun, and it makes a lot of things super cheap (I'll probably never buy my kids clothes).

I haven't made it all the way through what I was given tonight, so keep your eyes out for another giveaway of home-school stuff next week!

Think! Applelicious

This week's Think! challenge was to carve an apple into something else using your teeth and four toothpicks. Nothing more.

Bennet first wanted to make a rectangle. Then he decided on a boat propeller.



Lisel joined in too -- after she'd eaten most of the apple, I reminded her that we were making something from it. Voila! It became lollipops! Yummy!

How to make your own medicine & another giveaway (now closed)

One thing I always dread about winter is the colds. It seems that no matter how healthy we start off, we'll be down at least two or three times in the course of the winter. Considering that we have four preschoolers, I guess that's not too bad. But I still really dread those times.

We have the first one right now -- a super nasty cold that hit everyone at once. On Saturday night, three (count-em) three kids had croup. By Monday, the other kid and Mom were sick too. Oh, joyful times.


So now that you're all scared off from reading my blog because of the potential germs, let me share with you some all-natural ways to deal with those nasty colds. My wonderful Mother-in-law deserves credit for all of these. She has thirteen kids, (I'm married to number two, the last is now ten years old), and over the years developed a lot of methods that worked for her kids. She passed them on to me, and now I'm passing them on to you.

Garlic oil is my best trick in the bag. Warm it up ever so slightly, then rub it under sore ears (right along the back of the jaw) to soothe a minor ear infection, (if your kids will let you, drip it in the ear to kill that infection quickly). Rub it on your chest and back for a cough, rub it on your feet for almost anything that ails you. It'll smell bad, but it feels so much better immediately.

To make garlic oil: Chop 3 or more cloves of garlic into small pieces -- I do about 1/8 inch sized pieces. Chopping is better than crushing because you want to be able to strain the pieces back out. In a glass jar or cup, add 1/4 cup or more olive oil. Cover and shake, Then let set for two days, shaking every time you think of it (a few times a day). After two days, strain off the garlic and put it in a clean bottle or jar. If you keep it in a cool cupboard, it'll last about a year. I usually end up running out in a few months and making more.

To use it, I usually just put the whole bottle in the microwave for 12 seconds or so. But you can also drip a bit out on to your hands and rub them together to warm it.


EPY Tea:
This is the best for keeping kids' immune systems healthy and strong. But you're not used to loose teas, it can take a bit of effort. To make the tea, combine 1 Tbsp. Elderflowers (E), 2 Tbsp Peppermint leaves (P) and 1 Tbsp. Yarrow (Y). You can buy each of these loose at a good health food store. I make up bigger batches (with more like 1/4 cup E and Y and 1/2 cup P). To make the tea, add 1 Tbsp. of the mix to a cup of boiling water. Cover the cup with a towel to steep for 5 minutes, then strain off the herbs. You can drink it hot or refrigerate it. My kids require it to be diluted before they'll drink it. This is a great wintertime all-purpose drink, and it really does make a difference in congestion. EPY ice cubes are great in water to make a weak tea in either the winter or the summer.

Removing Germs from the air:
Every winter, my mother in law makes up a spray bottle of water with 10 drops of tea tree oil, and sprays all the rooms in her house (just spraying it in to the air). The moisture attaches to germs, and brings them to the floor, and the tea tree oil kills them. Or so she says. I use it too, and figure it can't do any harm.

Herbal tinctures
Finally, herbal tinctures are really what makes natural medicine work. Just like with "normal" medicine, you have to be careful not to overdose. But when used rightly, they are much more effective than the medicines you get from the pharmacy.

To learn how to make your own herbal tinctures, and to get my secret favorite herbal mixtures, you'll have to keep reading! I'll post about herbal tinctures next week.

So there you have it. My favorite herbal remedies. These work for me - they might for you too!
And, If you're still reading, you have a chance to win some of my EPY tea (Pre-mixed) and some home-made tea bags to go with it. Just leave a comment (and make sure your email address is in it). I haven't made the tea bags yet, so I can't post a picture, sorry! But I'll make them tonight, the draw a name on Saturday, November 1st. I'll contact the winner and mail out the tea and bags on November 6th (or before).

How to keep warm in cold houses (and a giveaway)

Colds seem to be going through the blogosphere this week -- Amy is freezing at 50 degrees ouside, and Stephanie is freezing at 50 degrees inside. (I would be too!)... And, my entire family is sick with colds, so they're definitely on my mind!

So, I thought I would share my tips for staying warm in a cold house.

I'm definitely no expert on this -- we keep our house around 65 degrees (18 C), because the little ones seem to get sick so frequently if we keep it colder. However, in the past, we've lived in several drafty houses, and here's my best survival tips.

1. Stop your drafts. This is almost an at-any-cost type recommendation. Roll up blankets (or sew some tubes and stuff them firmly) and stuff the edges of your windows and doors with them. Hang blankets over leaky spots. Two winters ago, before we replaced them, our kitchen doors had a constant covering of ice around them. Eating supper (or breakfast) was much more pleasant when we decided that we just wouldn't use that door and covered it with a giant wool army blanket. I've also had good (warmth-related) results with plastic over windows. But I don't like having my view obstructed. In one apartment, we bought caulk and caulked our windows shut. In the spring, we simply peeled off the caulk. If your paint is old, this probably isn't a great solution. But it really helped that winter. You can also buy styrofoam inserts for your outlets, to stop drafts coming in there. And don't forget about drafts from the basement - we hang a blanket over the stairs doorway too.



2. Dress for the weather. Think layers. The kids and I nearly always wear 3 layers. For the underclothing layer, wear insulated underwear - I love wool underclothing. I have this long-sleeved Woolrich brand shirt that I bought at a thrift store for 12.5 cents. Make sure you wear socks too (and shoes). I also like to wear a scarf around my neck. My youngest wears hats all the time. If your clothes aren't warm enough, cuddle together under blankets to read books on the couch.
   



3. Sleep warm. Pile on the blankets (you can always throw them off if you overheat during the night. Pre-heat your bed with a warm water-bottle or with a heated rice bag. Change to clean socks for sleeping (you'll be amazed at how much warmer your feet are in them). And keep your head warm. My husband always wraps a blanket around his head. I thought he was nuts until I tried wearing a hat. Wow, it really makes a huge difference! This is our first winter that we've had the kids sleep together. Four kids in one bedroom raises the temperature significantly (and not just because they're fighting). We also have a humidifier in their room that outputs a warm mist. It's toasty!
   



4. Eat and drink warm. Let the kids drink hot cocoa. Here's my favorite recipe (because it's cheap for us who get free milk).
   
   

   Hot CocoaFor each cup:
   Heat 1 cup of milk in a saucepan on the stove top over medium heat. Stir the cocoa sludge into milk. When it's as warm as you like, add 1/2 tsp vanilla (optional) and sip to your hearts content.

   
   Drink lots of hot herbal tea. Instead of drinking cold water, heat it up - it'll warm your hands too!
   
   
   And don't forget to eat warm (spicy) foods. Cayenne pepper warms you up by improving your circulation -- no more freezing fingers and toes! Consider taking it as a supplement (add some garlic too) if using in food isn't appealing to you.
   
   Use your oven to cook. When the food is done, turn it off, but leave the oven door open to heat the kitchen a bit longer.
   
   


5. And when it's just too cold to bear - get active! Run around inside, up and down the stairs, do jumping jacks or dance. Even better, bundle up and play outside. Come back in to a cup of hot cocoa and a new appreciation for the indoor "warmth".
   

And now, to help you all warm up. I've made you your very own hat. It's incredibly soft 100% wool, cut from a felted sweater. There's nothing warmer than a double-layered bomber hat, and this one is reversible too. I made it up last night in just a bit under an hour from the Betz White's pattern in Warm Fuzzies: 30 Sweet Felted Projects.

This hat is yours to win by either commenting, by subscribing to this blog, or by linking to this post (or my blog) from your blog. If you do all three, you get three entries. But in case I can't figure out how to chase you down, you should probably comment to let me know if you linked to me or subscribed. In your comment, please put your email or blog address. Blogger doesn't automatically show these to me, and if I can't contact you, you won't get your hat!



Comments will be closed on November 1st, and a name drawn then. You'll have until November 5th to get back to me with your mailing address, and I'll send it on out!

Keep warm! And visit here for other bloggy giveaways!

Free Homeschool Curriculum for Kindergarten

Wow! Just found out that it's bloggy giveaway week. I can't believe all the giveaways (and it's only Monday!)

So, what do I have to give away.... hmmmm.... LOTS!

I think I'll just do giveaway every day.... Things that are useful to Moms like me....

Today, it'll be a set of Homeschool Curriculum cards for Kindergarteners. These are basically nice flash cards, put out by Wonder of Words. There's several sets of flash cards, from simple syllables, sight-words, crazy animal-shaped letters (a "c" shaped cat, for example), Upper and lower case letters, and over 150 pictures that are organized into the letter of the alphabet they start with. (See the "pear"?)



To enter, leave a comment on this post. Tell me what you or your kid liked best about kindergarten. Make sure to leave your email address or link to your blog, since blogger doesn't automatically include them.

My kid, by the way, likes "making things" the best. We have him do lots of hands-on projects, and spend lots of time "working" outside.



So, the drawing will be on Saturday, November 1st. I'll email the recipient, or post a comment on your blog. You'll have until November 5th to get back to me with your mailing address, and I'll send it on out on November 6th. Okay?

Silly Songs

My kids love to make up silly songs.

Often they're about trees, bugs, turkeys or hunting.

Right now they are singing about how Jesus is silly, because he wears a dress even though he's a boy.

Emotional Decluttering: Living Simple Saturday

Today's Living Simply Saturday post by KeeperoftheHome is exactly what I've been thinking about this week. We have so much, it's amazing what spoiled brats we've become.

This whole week I've been struggling with my bad attitude. I'm tired of working - I don't really like the way I'm being treated, and I feel like I just want to stay home and train my children. I'm tired of Chester being in school - I want it to just be done. I'm tired of being too busy. I'm tired of unfinished projects around the house..... I'm tired of worrying about finances.

In thinking through some of my work-related angst, it occurred to me that I really have a fabulous job. I work 20 hours a week, and we live on that (My husband is a student and doesn't have a job). I set my own hours, I have a big cube with a terrific view. Who am I to be angry that I got singled out for a special honor (that included a $15 plaque-thingy) rather than getting a raise this year. In reality, we don't need a raise - we can live just fine on what we have.

But rather than be grateful, it's so easy for me to harbor resentment toward the company that I now view as stingy - never mind that they pay me enough for my family of six to live on with me working part time. And I worry that the money, which is more than we'd ever made our first five years of marriage, isn't enough. I find myself totally forgetting that God is enough, and that He is the one who takes care of me.

When I get this way -- self-absorbed -- I forget that I still have way, way more than practically the entire rest of the world. And I forget the kind of God I serve. One that knows me and loves me -- not just like he loves "the blob", but knows and loves me. He knows the hairs on my head, he knows how many messy diapers I've washed out, and he knows my frustrations. He also knows how to make me grow up. I've always had a hard time controlling my attitude. It's high time I learned.

It's amazing how much better (and more simple) life is when my eyes are in the right place (on God, not me). I can let go and forgive the tiny offenses that I feel. I'm emotionally decluttering. It feels good.

Think! Egg on Straws

This week's Think! assignment is to build a structure that will hold an egg at least 1 inch off of the table using only 12 straws and 12 inches of tape (scissors may be used, but not part of the solution.)

Bennet came up with the idea of making a 'barrel', but Mom had to help quite a bit with the implementation.



First, We cut the bends out of the straws, then cut the rest of the straw to be about the same length as the short section. That made each straw into 4 pieces, so we had about 48 little bits.

Then, we tried to tape them together. This took some doing, as they were too big around to gracefully hold with one hand and tape with the other. So Mom taped while Bennet held on to the mound. It took some trial and error to get them level too. In the end, it was really stable.





Bennet liked playing with tape and straws. He also made a "chair"


and a "two-shooter gun".

WFW: Walking the Path

Oh what joy it is to go walking in the prairie - surrounded by nature, soaking up God's love through creation.

Today, even though it's cold and rainy, we spent the morning outside, and it was wonderful. More pictures of the prairie are here.

Nature Walk: Prairie

We went this morning to visit Spring Creek Prairie. It was terrific!

They had mowed paths through the native grasses, a small stream, and a hay-bale building where you could do nature activities (like play with bones and build dragon-fly floor puzzles).

It was beautiful in all it's prairie goodness.


We walked the paths even though it was cold and raining.


Every spring, they burn the hills and let the native grasses grow up. They grow up to 6-7 feet in one season. The tallest are the "large bluestem", which look red to me.


We found a woolly bear caterpillar. Not long after this picture, Matthias found great pleasure in stepping on it.



Lisel was so excited to find this. "Look Mom! A fairy! I found a fairy!".


Some of the native grasses had the most beautiful heads.


I warned the kids that we don't eat berries that aren't growing in our yard.

Gratituesday: Apple Cobbler Recipe

Oh, I am so grateful for apples!

We've been given so many free ones this year, that I used up all of my jars, all of my Styrofoam cups and yesterday all of my zip lock baggies storing apples (and apple sauce).

So, yesterday, I used up the latest box of apples into Apple cobbler. I made three (it's all the pans I had available) to eat and freeze whole. Here's the recipe:

Apple Cobbler
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla (optional)
2 c. flour (I use a mixture of wheat and white)
1 t. salt
2 T. cinnamon
2 t. baking soda.
4 c. apples
1 c. nuts (optional)

1. Cream sugars, butter, vanilla and eggs.
2. Mix in dry ingredients. Mixture will be about he consistency of cookie dough
3. Stir in apples and nuts until dough starts to get a bit wetter.
4. Spread into a lightly greased 9x13 pan.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 15 minutes, then raise temperature 375 degrees for another 30-40 minutes or until done.

This is a great dessert or even breakfast. The consistency is somewhere between a very moist cake and pudding.

Handmade gifts for teenagers (more boy-ish edition)

As we begin the countdown to Christmas, I don't know about you, but I'm mentally taking an inventory. I'd like to give mostly handmade gifts, and I definitely have enough supplies in my stash. It's just a question of what to make for whom?

Teenagers and young adults are especially hard to shop for. It seems to me, even harder to make something that meets with approval under a teenager's scrutiny. Since I have several who are still teens in my extended family, I've begun a list of things I find online that I could make and would likely be "cool" enough.

• Monster Hoodies. These are a huge hit with my family. I clone them by taking a cheap hoodie (I found them on clearance from Walgreens late last winter. Thrift stores around here have plenty). Add on a jagged felt strip for teeth and be creative with the eyes. Here's my first one. I've made about 15 now, and they're always a hit. I even have one that I haven't given away yet. It's listed in my etsy shop. I have 5 Christmas "orders" for these from friends too.


• Painted Hoodies, Shirts, Pants, Hats, Bags or anything. Don't want to sew? Try painting the monster on. Use freezer-paper stencils to put a monster (or anything else) on a shirt (or anything else). A great resource for inspiration is the freezer-paper flickr group. Google (or better yet, sign up to swagbucks and earn a bit with your Google search...) .. Anyway, search for "free stencil" with your desired item to find something to use. Or just look through "stencil" and "silhouette" images, and free-hand copy the one you want (Or print the stencil out and trace it on the freezer paper).



• Bristlebots. Or the stuff required to make one. This is for those "tinker"-types. Most of the teenage boys in my family fall into this category. I've collected broken cell phones for a couple months now so that I can give my 13-year-old brother-in-law a set of supplies to make his own.


• Another one for those tinker-types is broken stuff that they can take apart (and maybe fix). My brother-in-law just bought 34 Zunes (I think) from ebay -- none worked worked. But he's fascinated to take a bunch of them apart and make a few working ones out of the bunch. And he hopes it'll make him money. For a 8-10 year old boy, an old radio is super fun to take apart.


• Car ornamentation. Think fuzzy dice, only more creative. I like these fuzzy gameboys.


• Monster pillows/plushies. It seems to me like anything LoveAndASandwich makes would be super-cool for teenagers. I haven't tried yet, but I don't think they would be that hard to knock off. Be sure to look through her past sold items for more ideas.



• For the boy who sews: Eyeball pincushions are definitely cool.



• Functional bags. Betz white made an etch-a-sketch laptop cozy. I made an abacus calculator cover. Others have made monster laptop bags, guitar shaped purses and bags, and backpacks out of ugly ties. Some people on my Christmas list are getting things like this....



• Food. You can't go wrong with a big batch of sweets (or homemade beef jerky) for them to have all to themselves.

What are your handmade gift ideas? What have you seen that would be great for a teenager boy? More handmade gift giving ideas coming soon!