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I don’t know what it is about kids, but for some reason, they love drawing and painting on materials other than the paper they usually use. And while I don’t mean walls and furniture, it may explain the appeal. One of my older daughter’s favorite things to do is to draw with fabric markers on these little bags that you can buy at the craft store. She whips through them like crazy, making little bags for everyone she knows. We have found them so fun to make with a play date, as a birthday party craft, or even as holders for special gifts.
Recently, I decided since she loves doing the mini-bags so much, why not let both my girls decorate bags that they could actually use? I made the bags myself with the some cheap heavy white cotton and printed fabric I had in my stash, but only because I thought of the project and wanted to get right to it after naptime. Had I thought of it in advance, I probably would have just bought the larger plain tote bags at the craft store. You could also use one of the free ones you undoubtedly have hanging around – it seems like everyone is giving out reusable canvas grocery bags these days and some of them are completely plain except for a small logo. I gave the girls non-toxic acrylic paint and brushes and let them paint whatever they wanted to. It was a great craft that both girls could do, and look how cute they came out. A whole new way to show off their artwork.
But I can’t finish this post without telling you to check out the canvas tote bag post on Inchmark. I love this idea and it uses those same tote bags. She made hers for a graduation gift but what a great idea for kids' birthday gifts. You could paint the letter a fun color and fill the bag with craft supplies, books or other letter-themed gifts. I can’t wait to try it.
And if for some reason you do feel like making your own tote bags, I found a compilation of good tutorials here. -- Crafty Mom
Finally! A first lady our nation can be really proud of as a model of a self-accomplished, strong backboned, mother. I’m talking about Jenny Sanford.
I am a political junkie of sorts, and I have to admit that the crazy escapades of South Carolina’s Governor Sanford, the transnational cheat who not only betrayed his wife and family but also his staff and ultimately his state when he left South Carolina to visit his Argentinean paramour without properly giving notice of his travels, is the sort of stuff that has me glued to CNN. As a news story, it was better than Spitzer, McGreevey, and Edwards all rolled into one. For the life of me, I cannot understand how so many accomplished men, men who are not only keenly aware of the spotlight on them, but in fact very deliberately chose to step right into it, cannot keep their pants zipped – at least for the 4 years, 8 years, or whatever their length of service in high public office. But what has roiled me equally are their wives who stand by them at press conferences, but don’t stand up for themselves and ultimately send the message to their children that saving their father’s public face is more important than their mother’s own personal dignity. Now, I’ll cut Elizabeth Edwards a major break. She is understandably in literal survivor mode. But the rest of them just make me lose faith in my fellow woman.
And then in walks Jenny Sanford. She was a Wall Street executive before working too hard to get her husband elected. She and her husband have four young boys, and when she learned of her husband’s infidelity five months ago, she first tried to work on forgiveness and to save her marriage. But she now says, “We reached a point where I felt it was important to look my sons in the eyes and maintain my dignity, self-respect, and my basic sense of right and wrong. I therefore asked my husband to leave two weeks ago.” She did not stand by his side as he gave an emotional press conference. And she has said, "His career is not a concern of mine. He's going to have to worry about that. I'm worried about my family and the character of my children." She said that she hopes to be able to save the marriage, but that ultimately she will be fine with or without her husband. Marriages are complicated and parenthood makes it even more so. And while no one can say whether these scorned political wives should ditch their husbands or try to keep their marriages alive, we can all respect a woman who understands that maintaining her own dignity and standing up for herself in the public eye sends an important message to her own children and to mothers everywhere.
Kudos Jenny Sanford.
-- New Mom
California Baby Calendula Cream cleared up a nasty diaper rash faster than anything we’ve tried before. It is all natural, isn’t too thick and has a nice smell (from essential oils, not added fragrance).
California Baby Cold and Flu Aromatherapy Bubble Bath does wonders for helping sooth a stuffy nose. The scent is described as Douglas fir and eucalyptus, but it’s not offensive and beats the medicinal smell of Vicks VapoRub. It comes with a bubble blower too so bath time during cold and flu season can be a little more enjoyable.
I guess the hygienist was right. I couldn’t have asked for a better appointment; my daughter was great! She kept her mouth open while the dentist counted, cleaned and flossed her teeth. The only issue we had was that she wouldn’t open her mouth for the dentist to remove the straw that suctions out the water – "Mr. Thirsty". Apparently, my daughter is a fan of Mr. Thirsty.
Is it wrong that I rewarded her (and myself) with a trip to the ice cream stand?!?!
-- Commuter Mom
Tomorrow is the big day, my daughter’s first dentist appointment. The hygienist recommended that we not make a big deal about it, so I haven’t really “talked it up” much; although, I did mention it when Elmo was on TV talking about his teeth, and I did tell her that she was going to the dentist this week and would get to choose a present from the dentist’s “prize closet” if she was a good girl. Here goes nothing.
The other weekend, I was doing some yard work that consisted of emptying planters from last year and redistributing the soil. As I was working, my 22 month old was watching me and exploring our back yard. After a while, he walked up to me, with a fistful, faceful and mouthful of dirt and a look that said “help!” Apparently the potting soil was irresistible to him and he took a bite. With a “kids will be kids” attitude and a good laugh, I took him inside and washed him up.
Turns out he was only trying to improve his immune system. I have to admit that from time to time, I do forget to wash my son’s hands before he eats…especially if we are out. Since he still eats with his hands, I’ve always thought this bad habit of mine was especially gross. Now that I’ve read this, I won’t feel as badly about it…but I’ll still keep my all natural hand sanitizer with me.
I am desperately and continuously trying to come up with meal strategies that work for my family and our work schedules that avoid ordering take-out as much as possible. So one recent Saturday morning I decided I would buy meals that could all be made almost exclusively on the grill, have a big grill fest on Saturday night and have meals all cooked and prepared for the entire week. Here’s how it worked out:
Saturday morning: Unpack the groceries, putting chicken and steak tips directly into marinade bags before they even go into the fridge. Also, unpack hamburgers, turkey sausages and assorted veggies. I feel I’m off to a good start.
Saturday night: Husband insists it’s easier for him to pick up pizza on his way home from running errands than for us to grill. (Never mind that his credit card had expired and pizza pick-up required two trips and resulted in cold pizza.)
Sunday night: Husband makes a quick trip to Target while I put the chicken on the grill. I return 10 minutes later to put vegetables on only to find the propane tank is empty. I transfer chicken and veggies into the oven. My husband comes home and switches the propane tank for a spare full one that I didn’t know we had. I cook steak tips on the grill. We eat steak tips, Uncle Ben’s microwavable rice (a surprisingly big hit), and some of the oven-baked veggies. Chicken and remaining veggies go in the fridge.
Monday: Husband and I each take some chicken to work for lunch. Cook hamburgers for dinner. We all eat hamburgers, veggies and a tomato and mozzarella salad.
Tuesday: Husband and I go to the Red Sox game and eat ballpark food. Daughter has leftover hamburger for lunch and leftover take-out pasta and meatballs for dinner with the babysitter.
Wednesday: Husband has leftover chicken for lunch, I have a work lunch, daughter has more leftover hamburger for lunch and chicken for dinner (though she barely eats any). Cook turkey sausages in stove top with onions; red peppers and asparagus roast in the oven. That’s parents’ dinner.
Thursday: Pizza day at the center for daughter! Leftover turkey sausage for husband and me for lunch. Daughter and I go out to dinner with friends. Husband has leftover chicken, maybe?
Friday: We’re out of food and ordering out again.
Next week my son will finish first grade. As you might expect, I’m filled with an array of emotions: pride in his accomplishments, relief that we’ll have some breathing room from the school routine, and excitement for our summer plans, to name a few. But nowhere in my range of feelings is there sadness, not even a tiny twinge of anticipatory nostalgia. It wouldn’t even strike me that this might be a bit odd, if it weren’t for two people last week who told me how sad they were that the school year was coming to a close and that their kids would be moving on. One even told me that she was bawling on the last day of class. Am I missing a sensitivity chip? I’m the first to shed a tear over a Kodak commercial. I sobbed like the next person during Terms of Endearment. But I just can’t muster up any sadness over what I perceive to be a major accomplishment and an exciting milestone. Heart of stone or rose-colored glasses?
Father’s Day is right around the corner and I was looking for a gift that my girls – well primarily my five-year-old – could make for Daddy this year. We love presents as much as the next family but in our house, the real “present” on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day is that the honored parent gets to pick what we do as a family for the day. I tend to mix it up a bit on Mother’s Day but my husband always chooses the zoo. So, I thought this year it would be fun for them to make a zoo-inspired gift that he could actually use.
My older daughter happens to be big into collages these days (more on that and why it’s a great family craft in a future post) so I proposed to her that we take it to the next level and suggested a few items that she could collage or technically decoupage with animal pictures and words. She chose a box for his dresser because when you’re five, you can never have enough boxes to keep all your treasures. But I thought I would share the other decoupage options we discussed and of course, any of these ideas could be done in a different theme – sports teams, pages from an old dictionary for a Dad who loves to read, nature themes. You get the idea.
You will need:
1) Old magazines (or new if necessary) Optional materials would be pictures from books, pages from dictionaries, tickets stubs, newspapers, etc. Really, the possibilities are endless so use your imagination and don’t forget that you can make copies of things if you don’t want to destroy something for this craft.
2) Mod Podge or other similar glue/sealer. Mod Podge works as both a glue and a sealer and is non-toxic. I’ve been using Mod Podge for as long as I can remember and it’s super easy for the kids, cheap and cleans up with soap and water.
3) Paint brush
4) Item to decoupage
Basic decoupage directions:
1) Get cutting. Cut out shapes, pictures, letters. Tip: Include younger children who can’t count in the hunt through magazines for good pictures and letters.
2) Tell your child to do a practice layout if they are particular/impulsive/cranky/tired because once it’s stuck, it’s stuck.
3) Apply thin layer of Mod Podge to backs of pictures/letters and position on frame/box in whatever way your child desires. Smooth out. Tip: It really looks best when the layers of sealer are thin. Otherwise you get bubbles and clouding. I say this in case an adult tries this project but don’t get stressed if your kid is doing it because it’s supposed to be fun and is a gift from the heart. Perfectionist moms need not apply.
4) Let dry.
5) Seal the decoupaged area by painting a thin layer of Mod Podge over the whole thing following the directions on the bottle. Tip: If doing a box, make sure not to have it closed because it will get sealed shut.
6) Let dry.
7) Repeat.
8) Give to Dad.
Dresser Catch-All:
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree in our house. My husband is also a collector…of junk that ends up on his dresser. She’s making this for his dresser but this could be used at work or really in any room where Dad keeps his treasures. You can buy the boxes at your local craft store. My daughter is using a photograph of her and her sister with Dad at the zoo last year in the middle of the top of the box. Putting Mod Podge right over a photograph can get dicey, particularly if you are sensitive to maintaining the exact the way it looks. If you choose to use a photo, I would definitely not choose the only copy of your favorite photo but you may also want to laminate the photo first or only seal the area around the photo. We’re going to throw caution to the wind and seal the whole thing because we’re crazy like that.
Picture Frame
By far the easiest and least time-consuming. This is a great gift for a Dad that works in an office and has a place to display picture frames. Just buy a plain wooden frame, follow the directions above and insert photo. I have decorated old frames using this technique and bought the frames at Goodwill/yard sales for next to nothing but it’s hard to find old frames (especially last minute) that have a good surface area for a project like this so I think it’s just as easy to buy one at your local craft store.
Car/Truck Organizer
OK, I loved this idea of making a car/truck trunk organizer for a gift but I’m not a fan of the cardboard box suggestion here because it’s impractical – one loose water bottle top after softball or a day at the beach and it’s garbage – so I think this would be great to do with a wooden box like those that fruit gets delivered to the grocery store in. This photo represents some vintage ones that are actually quite collectable but I recently made some shelves for my mom and they are easy to get (for free!) at your grocery store. Just ask the produce manager. Had my daughter chosen this, we would have painted the box, cleaned off the label (as long as it wasn’t vintage) and done the decoupage on the wooden ends only. My husband coaches her softball team and keeps all the extra bats, balls and gloves in his car and this would have been a great gift, so I would have encouraged her to do a softball/baseball theme on this but…maybe next year.
How timely – Where Does Our Food Come From?
Just last week we were shopping at Whole Foods and stopped to look at the plants. One of them was a giant pot of lettuce; I pointed it out to my daughter who thought it was hysterical that I thought lettuce grew. At dinner last night we were looking at pictures from last summer and she thought I was joking when I pointed to peach trees.
Clearly we need to have some conversations about where food comes from! I’m not quite sure how I’m going to explain chicken nuggets…
Since Green Mom is on maternity leave and hopefully taking some well-deserved time off, I thought I would do my inaugural post in honor of her and share a great recycled/nature craft that my girls and I did this weekend. I loved it because it incorporated two of my favorite things – getting outside and art projects. Hot Rocks. If you have a lot of broken crayons that you don’t want to throw away, you have to add this to your list. You need: Rocks Broken crayons The girls and I went outside and foraged for rocks that we thought were perfect – smooth, flat, not too big, not too small. This alone was a great activity that was perfect for my two-year-old and my almost six-year-old. I find that a rock three inches in diameter is about as small as you want to go because any smaller than that and they are a little hard to manipulate. Bring the rocks in, wash them up and then heat them on a foil-lined pan for about 15 minutes. I did them on 300 degrees and it worked perfectly. While they are heating, have the kids peel the wrappers off the crayons – this was my two-year-old’s favorite part. Once the rocks are hot, take them out and let the magic begin. You press the crayons right on the rocks, or draw on them and the crayons melt and blend together. Even I got into it. The way the colors swirl together is so fun to watch. We used cutting boards covered in newspaper to protect the counter. The rocks are very hot (obviously) so please caution your kids not to pick them up and I don’t recommend this for very young children. That said, my two-year-old was able to participate easily and just in case, I had both girls wear winter gloves to protect their hands. We’ll definitely do this project again. I had originally seen this on a blog called Wise Craft. Check out some of our creations. 
A huge congratulations to Green Mom on the birth of her second child. Enjoy the sunshine with your newest addition!!
We would also like to welcome Crafty Mom to Mom to Mom. Crafty Mom is a working mom with two girls, both crafty in their own right. At their house, craft supplies outnumber all other toys and games 3-to-1. In their free time, they’re always working on a project, sometimes something as simple as painting quahog shells and sometimes more elaborate like making their own paper mache puppets. In between, they draw and knit and sew and generally just create. In this space, she’ll share fun projects that they have come across and hopefully inspire others to get creative with their children!
We all know about the many, many “jobs” of a parent – on some days we revel in our role of being our child’s most important teacher, on other days we wonder how we became chef, laundress, maid, and chauffer. But lately I’ve been reminding myself that somewhere at the top of the list belongs the role of “chief advocate.” You see, two years ago I began noticing that my then 2-year-old seemed a bit off-balance (physically, not emotionally). I mentioned it to her pediatrician, who was entirely nonplussed and said she was probably just a bit clumsy. I had her assessed twice by Early Intervention, who said she didn’t qualify. And so we carried on. But as her peers learned to walk and run and jump, my daughter’s balance issues became more distressing. Fast forward two years, during which I raised the issue with anyone who would listen, years during which her hearing loss was diagnosed though I was assured it had nothing to do with her lack of balance, and lo and behold we made it to the office of a highly respected neurologist who “affirmed all of my observations.” I had to put that in quotes because the fact that he used those words was so incredibly gratifying after all this time. Anyway, we are getting ready for an MRI of her brain and spine. I’m incredibly nervous for what we might find, but so thankful that she is getting the attention she so clearly needs and deserves.
Six months ago, we implored my daughter to eat ice cream. Having just outgrown a milk allergy, she would not, and still will not, drink milk. She has also always measured around 5% on the weight charts. So we were advised to encourage her to eat any and all dairy in an effort to ensure she got the calcium and calories she needed. Everything from cheese to yogurt to smoothies was a challenge. But finally she caught on and is now a big ice cream fan. Given the contribution it makes to her dietary needs, I’ve never hesitated to offer her an ice cream on a special occasion or just to cap off a great day. But yesterday, a completely routine weekday, my husband took our daughter to the park around the corner to watch the kids playing little league. They encountered the ice cream truck, which is a permanent fixture at those baseball fields from June through September. Friends whose house borders the park told us that for years they convinced their son that it was just a “music truck” for fear he would beg for a treat every night. My daughter caught on a little faster (or maybe more likely, my husband wanted to treat her) and they came home with an ice cream concoction that was about three times the size of what I would ever serve her. She did dutifully eat some supper before she got her treat, and I was ultimately successful at convincing her to save some for the next night before she over gorged herself. But now that my daughter has discovered the joys of eating, I don’t want her to expect a treat every time we go to the park. And while I loved being able to offer the reward of an ice cream without guilt, I now think I have to come up with some non-food rewards. We’re using stickers for potty use, any other ideas out there?
Pampers diapers have reached new levels! I was planning on using Pampers Swaddlers with baby #2 already. In fact, even before the baby was born, I bought a box of the newborn size. My hospital uses them too! You can imagine my surprise and delight when I quickly learned that the newborn size has a wetness indicator on them- a yellow line that turns to blue when baby has peed. There's no more guessing as to whether or not a cry is that of wetness and discomfort. Unbutton a couple buttons on the babies outfit and voila! You can see if your baby needs his/her diaper changed. One can only hope this feature soon becomes available in the larger sizes too!
My son has had a rash on his stomach, back and legs for a while now. It started out as the perfect outline of a diaper, but has continued to spread. I’ve been trying everything to get it to go away…changing from Pampers to those without dye or chlorine, changing then eliminating creams. You name it.
Finally I took him to the doctor. She said it’s eczema, most likely caused by the elastic on his diapers because his skin is super sensitive. She gave me a skin care regimen that consists of Dove Liquid Soap, Eucerin cream and Cortaid. My heart sunk and my stomach turned when I heard this. I tried to reason with her that we only use all natural skin care products and all natural laundry detergent. How could using soap and cream with chemicals be better for his skin? She explained that the products we’re using might be too stripped down and even though they are natural, doesn’t mean it’s good for his skin (ex. poison ivy is in nature but it’s not good for skin). I’m heartbroken…I actually cried about it. Knowing about the harmful chemicals in skin care products, I told my husband I felt like I was handing our son a pack of cigarettes and saying “go to it.” (Dramatic I know, but hey, I’m 9 months pregnant!)
On the one hand, I want to continue using the products that I trust. On the other hand, why bother to have a doctor if I’m not going to listen to what she says. After all, if she had prescribed a medicated cream, I would not have thought twice about using it. I just keep telling myself that this too is like a medication for him and that once the rash clears up, I can slowly introduce the all natural products again. Reluctantly I went out last night and bought all the new recommended products…but I’m not happy about it at all.
There are ticks and sunburns and poison ivy, but summer is still my favorite time of the year. Here are the top ten things I love about being a mom in the summer: - “Cooling off” is an excuse to take the kids out to ice cream every night.
- A few balls and some sidewalk chalk keeps them busy for hours.
- Outdoor play is equally engaging for my 2-, 4-, and 7-year-olds.
- There is much less of a need to divert them from the TV.
- Running around outside tires them out in a healthy way, making the bedtime ritual much simpler.
- Informal “play dates,” instead of the kind that you schedule a week in advance and have to clean your house before and after.
- Cooking on the grill requires far less clean up.
- No boots, hats, snow pants, mittens, scarves, and coats to put on and take off.
- After-dinner walks.
- When I’m with the kids I actually do take time to stop and smell the roses…literally.
“This is my Mom. She has a nose – a really long nose (long line down the center of the picture). She has two eyeballs. And lots of smiles (I even have smiles above my “eyeballs”!).”
For a great book of poems that are funny, hip and appropriate for children aged 2-92, try Polkabats and Octopus Slacks: 14 Stories. A personal favorite story/poem/song of ours from the book is Funky Snowman (he loves to dance, though you’d think he’d hardly have the chance, without two feet or even pants…)
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