Rudolph Day!

December 2nd is Rudolph day!  We celebrated it a day early at the library today.  The craft we did was a simple brown square of paper folded accordian style and stapled at one end.  We then had the kids trace their hands on a black sheet of paper, and cut them out.  These were the antlers.  Add googly eyes, and a red circle nose and you have a cute little reindeer!  We also made some reindeer food for the kids to sprinkle on the lawn on Christmas Eve.  Last year we used baby food jars, but this year we did plastic baggies.  Just layer oats, white granulated sugar, green sanding sugar, red sanding sugar, and I add some Quaker Oatmeal Squares cereal.  Add a decorative ribbon, and this cute little poem. 

Sprinkle on the lawn at night

The moon will make it sparkle bright

As Santa's reindeer fly and roam

This will guide them to your home.

I also made Make-Your-Own reindeer sandwiches.  Make a peanut butter sandwich and cut into triangles.  Put large pretzels in the top for antlers, and I used raisins for eyes, and dried cranberries for the nose.  There weren't any left!  I think they were a hit!!

Snowflakes

Today is December 1, and we were lucky enough to get a nice blanket of snow!  The kids were so excited to look out the window and see that.  They insisted on digging out the good old snow boots!  So after naps today I figured we would do a science experiment.  I got out 3 sheets of black paper.  And then I asked the kids "What do you think the snowflakes look like?" STARS!!! and "Do you think they all look the same?" YESSSS!!!!  So we all bundled back up and headed out front.  I showed the kids how to hold the paper to collect the most amount of flakes.  So I asked them the questions again, and they said the same thing.  I showed them that all the snowflakes looked different.  There was a big one that had tons of lines, and then another big one that had very few.  They loved it! 

So we headed back inside and got out computer paper that had been used on one side.  Folded them up and showed the kids how to cut.  It was a great way to work on their cutting skills.  D didn't really get the whole concept and barely cut anything off hers.  L really got into it!  L did ask if we could decorate them with glitter.  Sure, no problem!  I went into the craft supplies, grabbed the Elmer's glue, glitter, paint brushes, and some egg carton cups.  I mixed up a few teaspoons of glue with a sprinkling of glitter and mixed.  I sat the kids down at the table and gave them a paintbrush.  They had a great time.  Do put a layer of newspaper down under the crafts before hand.  It wasn't too bad to clean up, I sprayed it down right away and it cleaned right up. 

The pictures don't do these justice!

sunflower craft

Last year and this year, we have tried to host a sunflower day, but we always seem to have it a bit too late in the season.  Well, we know for next year.  Last year I was able to get a large sunflower head and let the kids dig the seeds out.  This year I had a craft.  I had the shapes already cut out for the kids.  We had them all glue the pieces to a white sheet of paper.  We then drizzled some Elmer's glue over the yellow circle and had the kids smear it with their fingers (make sure to have wet wipes on hand for easy, quick clean up!).  The kids were each given a handful of dry black beans to then sprinkle over the glue.  They thought that was the best part!

The two stories we read were:

Big Yellow Sunflower by Frances Barry

and

Sunflower House by Eve Bunting

Turkey Day!

Okay, so I know that I'm a little behind, but cut me some slack alright ;-)  This year the kids were really into Thanksgiving, and everything that goes with it.  I thought it would be fun to make hand print toilet paper tube turkeys.  I helped the kids trace their hands on different colors of construction paper, and cut them out for them.  I had the beaks, feet, body, and gobbler cut out and ready for them.  (That's what I do during naps)  I had the kids glue them together.  They loved it and asked what else we could do that day.  Just an FYI, in the drive over to my dad's the night before Thanksgiving, it was apparently too cold for glue stick to stay stuck because by the time we got there all the eyes fell off.  Oh well, you live and learn!

I also hosted a turkey day for the moms group.  I had an image of a roasted turkey printed off (from The Mailbox).  The kids colored them, and then using glue sticks, we sprinkled thyme all over them.  We talked about how they both start with the letter T, and that some people using thyme while roasting their turkeys.  We also had a turkey print out to color and paste.  I had all the pieces cut out and in snack baggies along with all the crayons and glue sticks they would need to complete all the projects.  I find that this is an easy way to help pass out supplies to a big group of kids.

I also helped the kids paint their hands to make the Mayflower.  You paint the whole hand brown, and put down on a piece of blue paper.  Have the kids add a mast, and sail.  I let me kids use crayons to add more fun.  L thought they needed a sea monster and shark.  Who knew!  D added in a vague anchor. 

While at my dad's for Thanksgiving, Adam had created print outs of Pilgrims for the kids to color.  We colored and cut them out.  They formed a cone shape.  He then went through an old newspaper and cut out faces.  Found a sheet of black paper and cut out hats.  We then glued the whole thing to toothpicks, and stuck them in the top of the "body" cone.  Adam did make a really neat Mayflower out of a grocery paper bag.  It was amazing, but I forgot to take a picture!  Bummer!

Corn Day!

Last week, my co-organizer hosted a corn day.  She had 2 corn crafts, and we taste tested different ways to eat corn.  We tried canned corn, popcorn, corn nuts, hominy, baby corn, and mini corn bread muffins.  The kids tasted everything.  Yes they didn't like all the things, but they at least tried one bite of each.  Once they ate a bite of everything, we brought out the "corn" cupcakes.  I found these in the book Hello Cupcake, and have wanted to make them for forever.  The kids just ate the jelly beans off the top.  Our crafts were really fun and messy!  Amanda had a picture of a corn cob printed out, we smeared glue over the cob part, and then put un-popped popcorn all over it.  Then came the really messy one.  Each kid got a piece of construction paper.  We set out plates with different colors of washable paint along with a small piece of cooked corn on the cob.  They got to roll the cob in the paint and then roll it along the paper.  D really got into it, and she just wanted to keep going.  The kids thought the messy crafts were great fun.  Thanks again Amanda!

Fun Foods

This year for the moms group Halloween party I made mini mummy cupcakes for the kids.  Last year I did pumpkins and bats.  I also wanted to make a fun Halloween night dinner.  So after we got home from trick or treating I made mummy hot dogs, and since I had leftover rolls, I made mummy string cheese.  I also made monster apples, served with a puddle of blood (ketchup), and a big glass of monster blood to drink (sprite colored red).  Unfortunately, the kids wanted nothing to do with it.  Oh well!

Pumpkin Carving 2010

This year pumpkin craving was awesome!  I had the kids sit down at the table and draw out a picture of how they wanted their pumpkins to look.  They had great, do-able ideas!  Adam cut open the top, we sat the pumpkins on the kitchen floor and let the kids go at it.  They loved digging out all the pumpkin guts with their hands and spoons.  We then drew the faces they designed with marker, and gave them kid friendly knives.  We have this one from Pampered Chef, and it works great for carving pumpkins!!  When we were all done, we took the pumpkins outside to the front porch and lit them with flameless tea lights I picked up from Dollar Tree (2 pack for only $1). 

Indoor fun part 2!

This one was an Adam idea!  He used to do this all the time as a child and really thought the kids would have a blast.  And boy did they!  We took a thin sturdy book, taped a piece of computer paper to it.  Draw in a maze, this can be as simple of complex as you would like.  Wrap the book and paper in wax paper, and tape it down.  Hand it to the child and place a drop of water on the whole thing.  Have the child try to get the drop of water from the start to finish without letting the water droplet fall off the book.  They did this for about an hour straight, and didn't want to quit! 

A-B-C meme

I saw this on a friend's blog (Unlabeled Mama) and thought it would be fun to try.  Type the letter into your browser to see what comes up.

A-Accuweather.com
B- Blogger.com
C- craigslist.com
D- dollarstorecrafts.com
E- ebay
F- facebook
G- google
H- Hulu
I- IMDB
J- St. Joesph County Library
K- This blog!
L- Lion brand yarn company
M- Muffin Tin Mom
N- Netflix
O- Notre dame staff email
P- People of wal-mart
Q- Kercher's orchard
R- Regretsy
S- Skip to my Lou
T- Totally Tots
U- Gmail
V- Fifth Third Bank (whom I hate!)
W- Walgreens
X- This book
Y- youtube.com
Z- Gmail again

L-isms

Today in the car:
L: (while looking through some books)  Mom, do you know who the illustrator is on this book?  I think it's the Cat in the Hat.
M:  Robert Lopshire
L:  REally??  I still think it's the cat!


At a craft day at the library:
L: (talking to an adult friend)  You know, I don't like tormados.  Not the kind you eat, but the ones that have an eye and make your house spin around!

While eating salmon, mashed potatos, broccoli, roasted pumpkin seeds, pomegranate seeds, and milk for dinner:
L: Now this is what I'm talking
Dad:  about?
L: Yeah!!!
(I gave the kids mummy hot dogs, mummy string cheese, monster apples, and pop for dinner the night before and they didn't eat it.)

Right now he and I have a slight cold and runny noses.
L: Mom, the snot is dropping out of my nose.  I need a tissue!

While driving through downtown Gary, Indiana on our way to my dad's house:

L:  These buildings look different then our city.
Dad: Why, what is different about them?
L: The buildings just look different.  We don't have a brick building like that one.  I hope our car doesn't die here.
M:  The car is fine, and we don't have anything to worry about here.


L:  Hey Jackie, the car is making a bubbling sound.  I think it's the radiator.  We need to go to Autozone!

Halloween crafts

We had our first set of Halloween craft days yesterday.  We were expecting 22 kids so we had to come up with a way to make things move smoothly.  We set up different stations and had the moms move with their children to each station.  There were 5 different crafts to do, for different skill levels.  These ideas came from all over the place.  Some were from The Mailbox, teaching magazine.  I have been picking these up from the library for preschool, kindergarten, and 1st grade just to get some new ideas!

The first was just simply drawing pictures on black construction paper with yellow and white crayons.  Even the youngest can do this one!

 Next up, coffee filter bats.  I got this idea both from Frugal Family Fun blog, and Kaboose web site.  Use washable markers in purple, brown, grey or black.  Color the coffee filter, and "paint" with water over what you colored.  It gives it a water color type look.  Let it dry.  When it is dry, fold in half, cut points in the non-folded half, and wrap a half of a black pipe cleaner around the middle.

 This one is from my co-organizer Amanda!  She picked up black plates and cut slits all around.  Next we wrapped grey or white yarn around the plate to make a spider web.  The kids could then attach a plastic spider ring to the web!

 We were going to do candy corn sun catchers, but with the amount of kids we were having we felt this would be easier.  I drew a candy corn shape on some white computer paper.  I then ripped orange and yellow construction paper in pieces.  The kids glued the pieces to the shape.  Very easy for kids of all ages to do.

 This is one I got from The Mailbox.  We cut 8's out of black construction paper, and 8 legs for each one.  We got to talk about how sipiders have 8 legs.  Then we added 4 eyes to each one.  I think this one was one of the favorites!

 This one was also from Amanda.  She made a copy of different leaves and cut them out.  The kids then colored each leaf.  We cut the middle out of some paper plates we had left over from the group picnic.  The kids then glued their colored leaves around the outer rim of the plate.

Apple Tree craft

Another day, another craft!  Like I said, there are so many fun things to do in the fall, that I have to squeeze them all in somehow.  This is another one I saw in The Mailbox a teaching magazine.  A friend of mine gave me these large rolls of heavier white paper that her husband's work is done using.  So I cut large sheets off, one for each of us.  I used a brown marker and drew 2 lines to show where the tree trunk would be.  I let the kids color in the trunk.  Then using leaf shaped cookie cutters and washable green paint, we stamped green leaves on the top of our tree.  Let that dry for a little while.  I picked up some red bingo markers from Dollar Tree, and we used those to make our apples.  The kids really did love doing this, and have already asked me today what craft we can do.  This was super easy, lots of fun, and not very messy at all!

Apple Recipes

Since we went apple picking and had over 51lbs. of apples on hand, I had to come up with some ways of using them.  I didn't want to do the typical apple pie, because frankly, I don't like apple pie.  So I started to explore.  First up, applesauce!  I had never made applesauce before so I wanted to give it a try.  My friend A gave me this suggestion:
For every 4 mid-size apples (peeled, cored, chopped), add 1c apple juice or cider. Boil in a large pot on the stove until the apples squish with the side of a spoon. Mash by hand or blender for the consistency you like, then add the spices of your choice.  I really liked this!!!

Next came an apple cherry crisp that I made from the book The Happy Baker by Erin Bolger
Her's is an apple cranberry crisp, but I had cherries instead.  I LOVED this one!!!

I'm not Dutch Apple Crisp:

4 cups of apples, peeled, cored, and cut into small pieces
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 cups frozen cranberries (or cherries), thawed
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

topping:
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp. salt

1. Preheat oven to 375.  Grease an 8 or 9 inch square baking dish.
2.  In a large bowl, combine apples, lemon juice, cranberries, sugar and cinnamon.  Pour into prepared dish.
3.  In a medium bowl, cream together the flour, butter, and brown sugar; mix well.  Stir in the oats and salt.  Sprinkle evenly over fruit mixture.
4.  Bake for 40 mins or until fruit is tender and topping is browned.


This one was my favorite out of the 2 crisp recipes that I tried.  I loved it warm with freshly whipped cream.

The other apple crisp that I tried was from Family Fun magazine.  I won't post the recipe but I will post the link.  http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/fabulous-fruit-crisp-941584/
I don't have pictures of either of these because they all went way too quickly!

And the last thing I have made so far was the America's Test Kitchen Apple Dapple cake.  This was good, but just didn't hit the spot for me. (Although I have been eating it warmed up for breakfast the past few days ;-)

This recipe is:

cake:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/3 cups vegetable oil
3 large eggs, room temp
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Granny smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4' pieces
1 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Brown Sugar glaze:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 tbsp. butter, cut into 4 pieces
2 tbsp. milk

1.  Adjust rack to middle postion and heat oven to 350.  Grease 16 cup tube pan.
2.  Whisk the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl.  In a large bowl, beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla together with an electric mixer on medium speed until thick and glossy, about 2min.  Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly beat in the flour mixture, in 3 additions, until just incorporated.  Stir in the apples and nuts.
3.  Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.  Wipe any drops of batter off the sides of the pan and gently tap the pan on the counter to settle the batter.  Bake the cake until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 50 to 60 mins, rotating the pan halfway through baking.
4.  Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 min.  Run a small knife around the edge of the cake to loosen, then flip it out onto a wire reack.  Turn the cake right side up and let it cool completely, about 2 hours.
5.  Boil all the ingredients together for the glaze in a small saucepan over medium high heat until thick and syrupy, 1-2 in.  Drizzle the thick glaze over the top and sides of the cake.  Let the glaze set, about 25 min, before serving.

Some other apple recipes:

That wretched interloper
Soft Ginger Apple Cookies
Mini Applesauce Muffins

Frank and Pumpkins

If you couldn't tell, the kids and I love to do crafts. (Well, Adam does too)  And right now there are so many fun things to do, there just isn't enough time to do them all.  We started a count down to halloween, where we do something fun each night.  Last night we did crafts.  We made a pumpkin patch with orange bingo stampers, and footprint Frankenstein monsters.  The Monsters were made by painting the bottom of the foot (or hand) green, and then the toes (or fingers) black.  Stamp onto a piece of white paper, and let dry.  We let ours dry overnight.  Then this morning we used markers to finish the faces up.  The kids loved doing this.  Anytime they can paint their hands or feet, they are in.  We made sure to do this on the kitchen floor and I had wet wipes or a wet towel at the ready to wipe them down right away.  We really didn't have a mess at all!  I'll hang the pictures up in the living room and kitchen to help with the decorations!  Next week we are doing a HUGE craft day for the mom's group, and I will be sure to post pictures and instructions on all of those craft as well.

 L's pumpkin patch

 D's pumpkin patch

 Adam's, his is a little fancier then the others

 Adam and I did our hands.  Gee can you guess which one is Adam's?

 The kids frank'n'feet

 The paint said it was washable.  I don't think so.

 The kids finished monsters.  L's in on the top and D's is on the bottom.

My Frank'n'hand

Monster Mash!

I hosted a monster mash play date at the library this week in preparation for the Halloween season!  I saw the monster face craft that we did in a teacher's magazine that I checked out from the library called The Mailbox.  I had it set up so the kids could make either boy or girl monsters, and had all the pieces cut out for them.  We also had some monster coloring pages, and snacked on Frankenstein rice krispie treats!  The treats were made by using green food coloring in with the marshmallows, and then adding a little bit more once I added the rice krispies. 

The books we read were:
Go Away Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley 
Dracula and Frankenstein Are Friends by Katherine Tegen
Monster Manners by Joanna Cole
and Leonardo, the Terrible Monster by Mo Willems

 I found this idea on this blog

Indoor camp out!

A week or so ago I had an indoor camp out for the mom's group.  We held it at the local library in one of the large conference rooms.  I set up an indoor play tent, we had a fake fire, "roasted" marshmallows, made smores, sang songs, read stories, and ate trail mix.  The kids had a blast!  Adam made the fire for me out of paper towel rolls, and construction paper.  The marshmallows that we "roasted" were squares of white paper glued together only on 3 sides, and then had a large popsicle stick inserted.  That way the kids could remove the "marshmallow" and put them on top of the graham crackers and chocolate we had ready for them.  The crackers were just simply squares of cardboard, and the chocolate was squares of brown or black construction paper.  The crafts were very simple but the kids enjoyed every second of it!

The stories we read were:  Scare a Bear by Kathy-jo Wargin 


and Just me and my Dad by Mercer B. Mayer

camp fire

marshmallow ready for roasting

smores ready to go!

Fall craft time

I organize a local mom's group, and we try to do at least one craft and story day for each holiday, or season.  Sometimes these are difficult to come up with, and others and so easy there are too many to choose from.  We have many ways of finding these, but the web is the easiest way to do it.  In September is Grandparent's day, and let me tell you, there are not many craft ideas out there for little ones to do.  Last year we did the typical popsicle stick picture frames.  I didn't want to do that again, so I was determined to find something else.  Well I came up with one on my own.  I cut out a capital G from some cardstock (1 per child), I then punched a few holes in the center of the letter G, place a piece of tape over those holes, and press onto a sheet of construction paper.  I bought a package of kitchen sponges from Dollar Tree, cut them in half, wrapped a rubber band around the top (to make a handle), and then cut a bunch of "legs".  I poured some washable paint on a paper plate, and let the kids dip the sponges into the paint, and then on the paper.  Once the paint is dry you can easily pull up the letter G and write a sweet message to the grandparents in there.  The kids had a blast!  They turned out great.

We also did leaf rubbings at home.  Our friend gave us a large roll of plain white paper, so I cut a large sheet for each child, headed outside to find some different leaves, and sat us down on the kitchen floor.  I really think using the larger size paper made it easier, and more fun for the kids to do.

Another craft we did, I borrowed from the Frugal Family Fun Blog.  She has amazing cheap ideas for crafts with the kids.  You NEED to check it out!!  For this one, you cut a toilet paper tube in half and squeeze it into a leaf shape.  I squeezed the paint onto paper plates for the kids, and they dipped the tubes in the paint, and then onto the piece of paper.  Again, another hit!  I really think the kids LOVE to paint.

 Letter G for Grandparent's Day

toilet paper tube leaf prints

Fall leaf rubbings

Apple Picking 2010

It's hard to believe that this is our 3rd year apple picking now.  Boy the kids grow up quickly!  This was a last min. choice to go.  If it was up to Adam, we would have passed on it this year.  But it means a lot to me to go, so we went.  We always go to Garwood Orchard, they have the most amazing produce, tons of U-pick options, and perfect prices!  The kids just LOVE to pick anything for us to eat.  I never have to worry about them not wanting to eat it, thank goodness!  We headed out on a tractor drawn wagon to the orchard.  We brought with 2 large reusable bags, and I'm happy that we didn't bring more.  We ended up picking over 51 lbs. of apples within 10 min.  Both kids had fun, but L was all over it this year!  He would go to a tree, have 3 in his hand, and one he was eating each time he went.  I think the boy ate at least 4 apples while we were just picking!  But thanks to his enthusiasm we were done before you knew it.  He was also entertainment for anyone out there with us.  The best was when a pretty college aged girl walked past with her mother, L offered to help them and go with them.  Adam packed us a lunch, so we paid for our bounty, headed back to the car, and had some lunch.  I have already made a GIANT batch of apple sauce, an cherry apple crisp, and we have eaten a number of apples, but there are still so many left.  I think it's time for some pies....

Adam wanted to pick them both up on his shoulders and take a picture, they were not cooperating, and this was the end result!

apple picking 2008