Simply Alicia

Tot School and Weekly Meals

2012-01-24T16:54:00.000-08:00

Of course, right as I was starting something new, I got sick and then Makenzie got sick. We started our Bb Tot School but only really did it for one day, with sporadic activities here and there so I'm going to wait to share until next week. Life happens...

Favorite Meal from Last Week:

Our favorite meal from last week was still the Chicken Fettuccine with Blue Cheese, Walnuts and Grapes. This time I used a blue cheese that was better quality (and cheaper) from Trader Joe's. It added more depth to the sauce than the blue cheese I had bought at Vons last time. It was so so yummy. I think I could eat it every day.

What's for dinner this week?
Sunday:

Chipotle

Monday:

Lasagna Soup (a new recipe I found on Pinterest)
Garlic Bread

Tuesday:

Poor Man's Madeira
Browned Butter Broccoli
Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Wednesday:

Asian Turkey Meatballs
Brown Rice
Green Beans

Thursday:

Family Night

Friday:

Saturday:

Chicken bowls (gonna come up with it as I go...)

Tot School Tuesday - The Letter A and Days 1-3 of Creation

2012-01-17T00:00:00.000-08:00

We're back to doing Tot School! Yay!!! As I mentioned last week we are using the Tot School Printables and I am making some of my own curriculum for Bible study. I'm still working out kinks with the Bible study portion so we only read three portions and did crafts for two but it's a start. :) We are in a new schedule now so I'm trying to figure out how many days we will be doing Tot School. Initially I thought we'd do five but now I'm not so sure. Bear with me as I work it all out.

Makenzie is 22.5 months

Letter Study: A

Bible Study: Creation

Bible verse: Song for Saplings-Psalm 17:8

Creation Day One:

After reading Genesis 1:1-5 we did a craft showing that God created day and night. Makenzie loved this craft and understood the concept after completing it. I didn't get any process shots because I was trying to make sure that the paint stayed on the table.

After we complete our 7 days of creation of I'll share how to create each of the creation crafts.

Creation Day 2: We just read Genesis 1:6-8. I had a craft planned and we may go back and do it but it just wasn't going to work for us this week.

Creation Day 3: We read Genesis 1:9-13. Then we went for a walk around our neighborhood and picked weeds and grasses from the empty lot as we learned about God creating plants, trees and land.

I put glue all over a piece of paper and let Makenzie make a collage out of the items we found. This was a great time to continue to talk to her about what God made and to question her about what she had learned so far.

When working with the letter A we started by singing "A-Apple; Psalm 17:8" on the Songs for Saplings, this is Makenzie's Bible verse for the week. By the end of the week she has memorized the verse, "Keep me as the apple of your eye. Psalm 17:8" as "Apple Eye" Psalm teen 8. Haha. I know that her vocabulary is still limited but I'm so thankful for this CD and the fact that she is memorizing scripture and we are able to talk about what the scripture means. Then we worked on the printables. I was blown away with how quickly Makenzie caught on and how quickly we moved through the printables. We didn't do all of the printables this week because Makenzie already fully recognizes the letter A in random places and fonts. The letters A and M are by far her "favorites."

We started by dot painting the letter A (while in her pajamas, heh). She isn't big into taking directions right now so I was worried that she would flip out and want to do her own thing but she watched as I modeled and followed suit. As she stamped I would say the letter and it's sound and soon she was saying it on her own.

Next we drew a line from the upper case A to the lower case a. This was the one I really thought was going to take a few weeks to get. You can see initially she was dotting the page with the marker as she did with the dot painter then she decided to scribble on it. Once she finally slowed down and let me model for her, she got it and followed the lines. (I just got a laminator so I will be laminating this page so that she can use overhead markers on it and they can be reused throughout the week)

We also did a shape recognition page, which I didn't take any pics of. She was able to recognize and color the basic shapes (circle, triangle, square, star, heart and crescent) but still needs to work on rectangle, hexagon, oval and diamond.

Finally, she worked on a stamping page where she stamped As with a red stamp pad. This didn't keep her attention very long but I know that each activity will fluctuate from week to week.

Here were some other fun learning opportunities this week:

We went on a family hike with our good friend Kyle. We had a lot of fun and we were able to again discuss God's beautiful creation.

Daddy taught her how to cut the Melissa and Doug cutting fruit.

And eventually she started doing it herself...

and then I let her cut her own banana for her snack...

Lately Makenzie has showed an interest in unloading the dishwasher. We were letting her put the cutting boards away but now she has the job of unloading the silverware, after I take the knives out of course. At first this was exciting for her but now it all depends on her mood. I am treating it as a chore though which means that it's something that needs to be done, by her. She's shed a few tears and thrown a few fits but we're working through it.

Here's what the silverware drawer looks like after she helps.

Well I think that sums up our week of Tot School. It was nice being back in the swing of things and I'm looking forward to getting everything fine tuned.

Don't forget to check out the 1+1+1=1 blog for more great ideas. I linked up with her weekly Tot School post.

Menu Planning 1/15 - 1/21

2012-01-16T18:08:00.000-08:00

I didn't share my menu last week but we had some super yummy meals. First of all the Chicken Fettuccine with Blue Cheese, Walnuts and Grapes from two weeks ago was amazing so we put it on the menu again this week. Seriously, you HAVE to try it. It sounds fancy, it tastes fancy but it was very easy and fairly inexpensive, especially if you get your cheeses at Trader Joes. Saturday we had French Dips from Our Best Bites and they were so easy (made in the crockpot) and so tasty.

This Week's Menu Plan

Sunday:

Chicken Fettucine with Blue Cheese, Walnuts and Grapes from Ezra Pound Cake

Monday:

Pork Chops With Smashed Potatoes and Chimichurri Sauce

Tuesday:

Beef and Broccli with Brown Rice (new recipe)

Wednesday:

Baked Chicken Taquitos & beans (from our Church website)

Thursday:

Family night

Friday:

Stromboli and Salad

Saturday:

Girl's Night Out with Mommy Group

I'm linked up to I'm an Organizing Junkie's weekly Menu Plan Monday.

Back to (Tot) School

2012-01-08T15:44:00.000-08:00

Although I haven't done any specific Tot School posts for awhile we have been doing activities at home. December was mostly "Truth in the Tinsel" which we loved, by the way. Before that we were doing Tot School activities, just not as planned and I wasn't blogging about them. I have taken some time to totally rework our Tot School and I'm super excited about it.

Doing Truth in the Tinsel with Makenzie opened my eyes to something I could have never imagined. Doing the crafts totally helped Makenzie to understand and remember what we had read in the Bible. She is still able to tell you that Zechariah was not able to talk, and that Jesus is the light and Jesus is the King. Not only that, but while the crafts were out, she would take the crafts to whoever was over at our house and show it to them and tell them the short phrase she learned from it like, "Zechariah no talking" or "Jesus is King." So I am taking this idea and running with it.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 says, "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up." Bible stories are great but God has really been pressing on my heart to read the Bible to Makenzie. So each morning we will begin with reading a few verses from the NIrV Bible (New International Readers Version, which is at approx. a 3rd grade reading level) and doing a craft that goes with what we read. For the first seven days we will be reading and learning about the 7 days of creation as read in Genesis 1. I have it all planned out and I am so excited to share it with you.

In the afternoon I will be implementing the Tot School Printables from 1+1+1=1. We will begin with the letter A and move on from there, focusing on a new letter each week. I also purchased, at the suggestion of the 1+1+1=1 blog, "Songs for Saplings" which are songs focused on a memory verse for each letter of the Alphabet. The verses are short and the songs are repetitive so I'm hoping Makenzie will really take to them.

The teacher in me is SO excited to start this. I'm giddy like it's the first day of school tomorrow!

Buy Some

2012-01-06T12:11:00.001-08:00

Makenzie is becoming quite the bossy little girl. Which really is a great quality but we are working on teaching her the best way to utilize her bossiness and being polite while doing so. Her newest thing is "Buy Some."

This is how it usually goes:
Makenzie: strawberries!
Mommy: Makenzie, how do you ask for strawberries?
Makenzie: Strawberries, please Mommy.
Mommy: Sorry Kenzie we are all out of strawberries.
Makenzie: Buy some.

Now this isn't usually a nice "buy some" it's more like, "What do you mean we don't have strawberries? Get to the store and buy some!"

Here's a video but she's a lot more kind in this situation than she usually is.

A New Year

2012-01-01T22:42:00.000-08:00

I don't like New Year's Resolutions. I am not a good goal setter because I am often an overachiever. I set goals that sound great, only to not keep them and then feel like a total failure and totally discouraged. That's how I was with scheduling at home.

As a teacher I had very specific allotted amounts of time for everything. 60 minutes for Reading, 30 minutes for Word Work, 45 minutes for Math, etc. Everything was very specific, I wrote my schedule down on the board each day along with the allotted times and we pretty much followed it verbatim. I tried this at home and it was of course a massive failure.

A few months ago I sat down and made an ordered list of tasks I wanted to accomplish for that day. There were no times set and it all revolved around what I typically had planned for that day. It worked great! My floors got mopped three weeks in a row, which NEVER happens.

There are so many times that I feel overwhelmed by all that I need to do. I have a hard time breaking it down and I can get anxious and stressed over the tasks at hand. Having this list helps to ease my mind. I know what I need to get done today and if there is something really messy, I know that there is a day during the week that I have set aside time to do this task and so it doesn't nag at me all day.

I had to rework my lists today as our schedule is changing...again. So I thought I'd let you see a sneak peek of how I do it. This is the notebook that I keep all my scheduling, lists and dinner plans in. The picture above is just a rough draft, don't mind the sloppiness. Basically I've just written out all that I want to accomplish that day, in order. Some things remain on the list every day, like "Clean-Up Dinner & Living Room." Other things are tasks specific for that day, like "floors" and "kitchen (which means that I'm deep cleaning the kitchen)"

I have talked to mommies who want to schedule but are in the same predicament that I was in, a failed schedule leaves you feeling frustrated and completely unmotivates you. I have found this list to be the exact opposite. I am motivated by it and if I don't happen to complete something on the list I can rest in the fact that it's back on the schedule for next week. Also, my Saturdays and Sundays are very loosely planned which leaves time for family activities and finishing up any tasks that need to be completed. Saturday mornings are for relaxing and doing any chores that I didn't do but feel must be done, the rest of the day is open. Sundays we go to church and then Makenzie goes down for a nap while I clip coupons, make my meal plans, my grocery list and go grocery shopping. This has worked great for me! Do you have a system for organizing your day? I'd love to hear all about it!

My Favorite Memories of 2011

2012-01-01T16:22:00.000-08:00

We were so blessed this year. I am beyond thankful for the blessing that I've had to be able to stay home with Makenzie for another year. We are all healthy and the Lord has blessed us beyond what I could have ever imagined. I am so thankful for our little family, as well as our parents and siblings who are such a blessing to us. I am also thankful for the friendships that have been strengthened and for rekindling a new friendship this year with our friends from Seattle, we were so blessed by them and cannot wait to carry on many more years of friendship (we are so looking forward to vacation with them this year!)

Makenzie has grown so much this year and has learned so much! I thank the Lord for His many blessings.

Here are some of my favorite memories from 2011:

The day Makenzie turned a year old.

Makenzie's first birthday party. Such a fun day!

Easter

Makenzie's Baby Dedication

Our 4 year anniversary trip to Santa Barbara

Beach Trips

Disneyland

Sea World

Trips to the Splash Pad

Dirk's Surprise Birthday in Newport Stand-Up Paddle Boarding with some of his friends

Makenzie's first trip to the zoo

Tot School

Pumpkin Patch

Halloween

Potty Training

Decorating for Christmas

Our annual visit to see the Christmas lights

Our final visit to Sea World

Menu Planning 12/27 to 12/31

2011-12-27T11:18:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted my menu plan the past couple of weeks because we have hardly eaten at home. This week isn't entirely different but I have a few recipes I'm excited to try so I'm posting what little we are eating at home.

This Week's Menu Plan

Monday:
Recovery from Christmas

Tuesday:

Much needed date night

Wednesday:

Chicken Fettucine with Blue Cheese, Walnuts and Grapes from Ezra Pound Cake (new recipe)

Thursday:

Benchiladas from Annie's Eats

Friday:

Oven Baked Frito Pie from Sweet Treats and More (this is a new spin on an old favorite for us)

Saturday:

New Year's Eve Party. Not exactly sure what I'm making but I know it will include these Baked Jalepeno Poppers. My brother made them for my other brother's engagement party and they were SO yummy!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-26T15:39:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas friends! I hope you all had a very blessed day. We were so abundantly blessed this year. It is so much fun to have a child who is starting to get the excitement of Christmas. Just too much fun!!! I have a lot of pics to share but here's one of my favorites that Dirk's awesome step-mom took. Love the look on Makenzie's face as she's answering the phone on her brand new kitchen.

Photo by DeeDee Dallas

Crib to Bed, Bed to Crib

2011-12-23T15:18:00.000-08:00

So earlier this week, Makenzie fell out of her crib again. This time though, I was peeking through the crack in her door watching her because she was upset. I watched her literally throw herself out of the crib. She didn't climb, she was desperate and she threw herself out of the crib. I ran into her room but of course it wasn't fast enough to catch her. She got quite a little rug burn on her head but she was okay. Of course that was the end of that. She's obviously having sleep anxiety and there was no way that I was going to let her stay in her crib.

The next day, Dirk converted her 4-in-1 crib to a toddler bed and she and I went shopping for new sheets, hoping that this would entice her to sleep in her bed. She picked out a fuzzy Rapunzel blanket and carried it all over the store.

We read books in her new bed and acted like it was the best thing that ever existed. Well she wasn't convinced. She loved sitting in it but when it came to sleep, it did not go over well. When she finally fell asleep for her nap she woke up 30 minutes later in a panic. The first night, once she finally fell asleep, she woke up at 1:00 screaming and in a panic, standing in the middle of her room. The sleepy me, grabbed her and put her in bed with us, which I know was a bad choice but I wasn't thinking right. The next day, naptime went the same way and she woke up in a panic at 4:00 in the morning. This time I laid on her floor with my pillow and a blanket and she went back to sleep. I got no sleep and she kept waking up and not putting herself back to bed.

Although I was planning on sticking with it, we decided that she's just not emotionally ready for a bed yet. She's already having sleep anxiety and then add in a new sleep situation, it's just not working. So, Dirk had the great idea to put the crib back up and then keep the mattress on the floor.

It's been the perfect situation. She's still crying a bit to go to sleep but she's not desperately crying and she puts herself to sleep and stays asleep. Praise the Lord! She has been so moody and so trying these past few days. If Dirk wasn't here to help, I think I'd be out of my mind. Just another bump in this journey called parenthood. :)

DIY Bowling Set

2011-12-19T14:01:00.001-08:00

I have wanted to make a DIY bowling set for Makenzie for quite some time. I finally got my hands on enough empty coffee creamer bottles that I decided to make it as a Christmas gift for her. I got inspiration from several different blogs and ended up with this.

It's so easy and so cheap and I'm hoping that Makenzie will have lots of fun with it!

What do you need?

10 clean empty plastic containers, if you're just now washing them it's okay if they're a little wet.
glue gun
10 different acrylic paints (I just bought the cheap $.79 paints from Michaels) just get solid colors glitter or pearlescent leaves a horrible streaking and uneven coverage.
nail polish remover and cotton balls

How do you do it?

First you'll take the labels off of the bottles.

Put a different color paint in each botte, you may have to play with the amount, start with less, add more if needed. If your paint is fairly thin then you're good to go, if it's a little thicker add up to 1/2 tsp of water. If you're not sure move on to the next step and adjust if needed.

Put the lid on well and shake it up, lightly hitting the sides so that the color disperses over the whole bottle. If you're not making this as a gift, this is a step that the kids would love to do. Drain excess paint.

Take off the lids and let the bottles dry at least overnight, some may take longer depending on how much paint was left in the bottle.

When bottles are dry, replace the lids. Use nail polish remover and cotton ball get to get the ugly "use by date" off. (don't mind my nasty, unmanicured fingernails)

Then use a hot glue gun to glue the lids tight so tiny hands can't open them.

I chose to include a larger ball since Makenzie is still young and needs some work on her gross motor skills but if you have older kids you would want to include a smaller ball.

Voila! I already had the ball and the containers and I had a coupon for Michales so the cost to make this was less than $7, plus I have lots of paint left over for other projects. Yay!!! Now to see if she thinks it's as great as I do. :)

Christmas Toys

2011-12-13T09:33:00.000-08:00

This past week I've been observing the toys Makenzie plays with so I know which toys I can put away to make room for the new toys coming soon to a crowded house near you. Heh. I'm always trying to research toys on the internet and talking to other parents to see what their kids played with. If you're still looking for gifts to get your little one, here are some of the toys Makenzie has loved this past year.

LeapFrog's My Pals Violet or Scout. Makenzie got this last Christmas and liked it but she continues to love it more and more. A few of her little friends have one and they love theirs as well. It's personalized to say the child's name and sing songs to the child. So cool!

Laugh & Learn Fun With Friends Musical Table - Fisher Price Toys - Laugh & Learn. Makenzie doesn't play with this a ton now but it does still get some play time. She got this as an early Christmas present last year and played with it ALL the time. It's great because the legs are made to come off so that the tabletop can sit on the floor so babies who aren't standing yet can still play with it. It's been a hit with many kids that have come over. (Look at my tiny baby!)

LeapFrog's Shapes & Sharing Picnic Basket. My brother bought this for Makenzie. She has always liked it but recently really started to play with it. It has shape sorting and fun songs and of course the element of pretend play which Makenzie is totally into now. She brings us food over and over again. She sets up the whole picnic, puts it away and sets it up again. Love this toy!

Little Tykes Cozy Coupe. What kid doesn't love this?

Books. Makenzie LOVES books, as do I. Some of her favorites this year were:

Tails by Matthew Van Fleet

Heads by Matthew Van Fleet

Brown Bear, Brown Bear & Panda Bear, Panda Bear by Bill Martin Jr. & Eric Carle

Way Down Deep In the Deep Blue Sea by Jan Peck

Babies on the Bus by Karen Katz

Tomorrow I'll share some of the things she's going to be getting this year along with a fun DIY Christmas present.

The Day We Bought a Gate

2011-12-11T22:40:00.001-08:00

While Makenzie was a VERY difficult baby she is pretty easy toddler. For sure she has meltdowns and throws fits but she is typically well mannered, loving and hilarious! Last Thursday she threw us for a loop!

I went into her bedroom around 12:15am, as I do every night to check on her, pray over her and cover her up if I feel like it's too cold. This night, I covered her up and immediately she was awake. Great...

I tried to lay her back down and tell her it's still "nigh-night time" but it was a no-go. I picked her up and cuddled her for a little bit and then tried to put her back in her bed again, which has always worked, but she literally freaked out, more than I have ever seen before, screaming and desperate. By this time, it's like 12:40 and all I want to do is go to sleep so I decide that I will take her into our bed, coax her to bed and put her in her back in her crib. Mind you, she LOVES her crib and anytime I've ever tried to put her in our bed she says, "No, Kenzie bed." So I figured this night would be no different. She was wide awake, so around 1:15 I decide to try her in her bed again. I put her in her bed, she fought it but I laid her down, patted her back and coaxed her to sleep. I creeped into our bed, got comfortable and suddenly I hear Makenzie screaming "Mommy!" and freaking out like some stranger is in her room and taking her. Seriously we've never heard her scream like that before.

So I get out of bed, only to hear her close by. I look down our hallway and see her standing at the top of the stairs! Within the, maybe, 30 seconds it took for me to get out of bed and get to her room (which is right across from ours), she had gotten out of her crib and was down the hall standing at the top of the stairs yelling, "Mommy!" I freaked out! I yelled, "Makenzie, stop!" ran and grabbed her. This startled Dirk and he came running out and I told him what happened. I was shaking, she was sobbing uncontrollably and Dirk was like a deer in the headlights. I was scared not only because she was at the top of the stairs which we had no gate on, but also because I had no idea how she was out of her crib. To this day I have no idea how she got out of her crib so quickly in the desperate manner she was in. Seriously, I. DO. NOT. KNOW. She has never even showed interest in getting out of her crib and hasn't since. Dirk and I have tried to talk over every possibility but nothing makes sense, unless she literally jumped out of her bed and the Lord saved her from injury. I don't even know.

Needless to say, we bought a baby gate the next day.

Now I'm just praying that she's not starting to have nightmares. Yesterday she woke up suddenly from her nap screaming and sobbing and yelling, "Daddy!" in the same desperate manner that she was the other night. She has never had any issues like this before. Even when she does awake she usually just plays in her crib for awhile and sings or talks. I researched night terrors and nightmares and it definitely sounds like nightmares as she is distraught and remembers whatever it is that has startled her awake. I tried to ask her why she was screaming but she wasn't able to tell me. Toddlers aren't able to differentiate reality from dreams so I guess that makes things even more scary. I'm just praying that this isn't going to be a reoccurring thing. It's so sad.

Our Christmas Card

2011-12-09T15:39:00.001-08:00

Seriously, I love Shutterfly. We just ordered our Christmas cards and I think they turned out so cute! Big props to my hubby who rushed home from work to take some quick pics so I could get in on Shutterfly's great deal!

Photo Card

View the entire collection of cards.

Truth in the Tinsel: Days 3 and 4

2011-12-04T22:50:00.001-08:00

The crafts for days 3 & 4 didn't allow for a lot of involvement from Makenzie basically I put glue on and she glued whatever needed to be glued. Despite her lack of involvement, the conversation was great and she's really getting it!

First was Zechariah. We learned that Zechariah didn't believe what the angel Gabriel said when he told Zechariah that his wife Elizabeth would have a son so God shut his mouth so he wasn't able to talk. Makenzie says, "Zechariah, no talking." The bubble over the mouth really helped her to understand that.

The next day was the angel. We read about the angel Gabriel again but this time he came to Mary to tell her that she was going to bear a child and He would be the messiah.

These crafts are really helping Makenzie to see the concepts I'm teaching in a concrete way. I'm so thankful for this book!

Menu Planning and Chicken Parm Recipe

2011-12-04T14:24:00.001-08:00

Well, we are going to be gone a lot this coming week so our menu is scant. I didn't post last week for the same reason but I ended up trying a recipe that we really like so I thought I'd share. It is a chicken parmesan bake that I found on Pinterest.

Chicken parm is one of the first dishes I ever made for Dirk and has since become his favorite, in fact I searched my blog and found that I have never posted my recipe here so I must do that soon! Anyway, this recipe doesn't compare to our typical chicken parm but it is SO easy to make, very few ingreditents and there's very little clean-up, can't beat that for a busy December night. I served it with zucchini but it would be super yummy with a fresh salad. There are a few things that I would change in the recipe which are expressed in the recipe below.

Chicken Parm Casserole
adapted from: Foodwishes Blog

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
hot red pepper flakes, to taste (I omitted these)
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts pounded to 1/2 to 1/4 inch
pinch salt
2 cups marinara (don't measure just eyeball it)
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (you can use dried if you'd like, just sprinkle on top)
8 oz. shredded mozzarella (I eyeball this because we like lots of cheese)
4 oz. parmesan, shredded
1 5-oz pkg garlic croutons

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. In the bottom of a baking dish (whichever size will fit your chicken) spread olive oil, crushed garlic and red pepper flakes. Season your chicken breasts with a little salt. Place chicken breasts on top of the olive oil mixture.

Pour and spread approx. 2 cups of marinara (Don't bust out a measuring cup, just make sure that the chicken breasts are covered with marinara). Sprinkle the chopped basil on top of the marinara. Sprinkle approx. 4 oz. grated mozz. and approx. 2 oz. grated parm. on top of the marinara. Put the garlic croutons on top of that. Sprinkle the remaining cheeses on top of the croutons. Pop in the oven for about 35 minutes or until your chicken is at 160 degrees. Enjoy!

So what's on the menu this week?

Sunday:

Italian Subs (recipe to come)
Chips
Fruit

Monday:

Tuesday:

Lemon Chicken Breasts (new recipe from Barefoot Contessa)
Garlic Butter Roasted Mushrooms (new recipe from Smitten Kitchen)
Smashed Red Potatoes

So the rest of the week we have something going on so no need to plan dinner. Yay!

Truth in the Tinsel - Day Two

2011-12-02T12:48:00.001-08:00

Today went much better than yesterday did. We read part of the scripture assigned and talked about how Jesus is the King forever.

Truth in the Tinsel - Day One

2011-12-01T10:25:00.001-08:00

So we did our first day of Truth in the Tinsel. I was so excited to start but Makenzie is in a bad mood today. Usually she will sit and listen to me read and will sit nicely and do any craft I give her. Not today, she cried when I wanted to read to her and she had a fit trying to do the craft. She was not cooperating like she usually does. We did get to read after much coaxing and about half way through the craft she had a meltdown. She's just not in a good mood today. Here's her finished craft. There are holes but that's what we could get done today. :)

I introduced the concept by holding the candle away from the tree and telling her that before Jesus came the world was dark. Then I put it on the tree and let the lights light it up and said with Jesus there is light. So today we are learning, "Without Jesus it was dark, with Jesus it is light." She's getting it so far. I'm hoping that tomorrow will go much better than today did!!!

Truth in the Tinsel

2011-11-28T10:36:00.001-08:00

For the past month I have been searching for an advent calendar. A true advent calendar, not just a countdown to Christmas but a countdown that has the meaning of Christmas interwoven with it. I struggled to find something, until this weekend when Carissa from my favorite blog 1+1+1=1 posted a teaser pic on her Facebook page. She posted about something called "Truth in the Tinsel". I was immediately intrigued. I did a little more research and after talking it over with Dirk, we decided that this is what we are going to do this year and I'm SO excited!

So essentially, Truth in the Tinsel is an ebook that a mom, Amanda, put together to countdown to Christmas. Each day you are given a short passage of scripture to read, and a fun craft to go with it, along with other fun things like clues that can be used for guessing the project for older kids. The target age is preschool but the mom who created this has been using this with her daughter since she was a year old so it can be modified. Although some of the crafts might be too difficult for Makenzie, it appears as though it will be something that I can modify for her. The best part is that the ebook is only $4.99 and most of the supplies are things that you probably already have at home. I am so so excited to start this.

I love how Carissa from 1+1+1=1 has hers set up in brown paper bags. I think I'm going to do something similar. There are only a few days before the first of December so I need to get on it. If you are looking for something to do with your kids I highly suggest it!

Menu Planning 11/20 - 11/26

2011-11-20T15:34:00.001-08:00

How last week's menu went:

This week was a weird one. Kenzie got sick in the car on the way to MyGym on Tuesday morning so from there on it was a crazy week. Then on Friday I had a headache that turned into a gnarly migraine by that night and didn't go away until Saturday afternoon. We ordered pizza on Tuesday and had grilled hamburgers on Saturday so the menu didn't get followed as planned.

Favorite meal from last week:
Chicken Tortilla Casserole (no picture). I've made this several times before but it was always too spicy. This time I omitted the chipotle peppers and used 1/4 cup of salsa instead. The roasted corn helped to add to the charred taste to the casserole. It was really yummy. All three of us gobbled it up quick and it was easy clean-up which is always a plus!

This Week's Menu Plan

Sunday:

Special Treat: Miguels! Going shopping at the mall so we'll eat there.

Monday:

Chili (carried over from last week)
Bread

Tuesday:

Chicken Gyros (new recipe from Annie's Eats)
Homemade Pitas
Greek Quinoa (probably use a variation of this recipe but add cucumber)

Wednesday:

Taco Salad

Thursday:

Thanksgiving!

Friday:

Family Dinner

Saturday:

Roast Chicken with Carmelized Shallots (another favorite from Annie's Eats, can you tell I love that blog???)
Broccoli
Mashed Potatoes

I am linked up to I'm an Organizing Junkie, great blog if you haven't checked it out yet!

A Mom's Purpose

2011-11-16T11:52:00.001-08:00

About 2 months ago we started doing family devotions at the dinner table. Although Makenzie isn't always a fan of sitting still after we're done eating, she sits through them and actually takes in what Dirk is reading. This led Makenzie to ask for devotions every time we eat and to pray for anything that she is about to eat. Whether it's a meal or a goldfish cracker, we thank the Lord for it.

For our evening devotions Dirk reads from "Our Daily Bread" which is something that his grandfather did at the dinner table and so Dirk carries on the tradition. After breakfast or lunch I read one of Makenzie's Bible story books.

Our favorite is The Jesus Storybook Bible.

But we also read The Beginners Toddler Bible

My First Story Bible

Really Woolly Bedtime Prayers

and of course the Bible itself.

This week while reading "A Mom After God's Own Heart" for a Mommy Study that I'm co-leading with a friend, I read Deuteronomy 6:5-9:

"You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

I have read these verses many times and have heard it quoted even more than that, but this time the Lord really spoke to me. One of my biggest struggles in being a stay-at-home-mom is losing sight of the purpose. Coming from a position where I was constantly getting feedback and progressing and finding successes and making a difference in lives of many children, I find myself wondering if I am doing things right. I feel like every week I'm doing the same tasks, only to redo them the following week. Am I doing my job? Am I making a difference for Lord? Am I doing what I'm supposed to be doing? Of course Makenzie is healthy and happy and thriving which is, in a sense a measure of success, but wouldn't she still be healthy, happy and thriving if I weren't at home with her?

These verse in Deuteronomy give me a new sense of purpose, a renewed sense of why I'm staying home and what my goal is. The measure of success is: Am I allowing God to be in me every second of every day? Am I compromising in any way? Am I teaching Makenzie the things of the Lord at every opportunity and holding myself in a way that shows that God's Word is in my heart? Am I living in such a way that there is room only for God?

My goal is to live a life of purpose, where every single thing I do has purpose. That doesn't mean that I have to be filling up my every minute but it does mean that if I'm watching TV there is a purpose for it, such as to relax and unwind or to relax to prepare for the rest of the day. It's about making everything a choice and doing nothing mindlessly. My goal is to DILIGENTLY teach the things of the Lord to Makenzie. To talk of the things of the Lord ALL day long. To remember them and to meditate on them.

I have had a personal conviction the past few months to listen to very limited amounts of non-Christian music, if any at all. I'm not saying that's for everyone but for me, as I listen to Makenzie sing the words to ANY song that we play, god put on my heart that I should be filling her mind with the things of the Lord not ideas without godly purpose. I understand that not every person would agree but this is a choice that I have made because of the burden God has put on my heart. In the end, my ultimate desire is to be a woman of God, a woman of purpose and to raise children of purpose. When I'm feeling discouraged or purposeless I will return to this verse and meditate on it. Evaluating whether or not I am truly living for the Lord.

Menu Planning 11/13 - 11/19

2011-11-13T22:13:00.001-08:00

Most of the meals I made this week were new recipes and we were pleasantly surprised by them. I will probably make the Asian Turkey Meatballs again but with less ginger.

The chimichurri pork chops were really yummy, made them with mashed potatoes instead of garlic rice pilaf because I realized that would be way too much garlic in one meal.

So what's on the menu for this week?
Sunday:

Dallas Family Tacos

Monday:

Chicken Costolleta
Mashed Potatoes
Green Beans

Tuesday:

Honey Sauced Chicken
Brown Rice
Broccoli

Wednesday:

Chicken Tortilla Casserole (Annie's Eats)
Roasted Corn

Thursday:

Family Dinner

Friday:

Balsamic Roasted Chicken

Saturday:

Chili

I am linked up to I'm an Organizing Junkie, great blog if you haven't checked it out yet!

Mexican Chicken Lime Soup

2011-11-07T22:09:00.000-08:00

Awhile back, when the weather was still a million degrees, I came across Rachel Ray's recipe for Mexican Chicken Lime Soup. One of my favorite things about fall and winter are the cozy dishes like homemade chicken pot pie, and chili (anyone have a chili recipe they love?) and stew and soup. Dirk doesn't love any of the aforementioned but he will tolerate them on occasion because he knows that I love them. When I saw this recipe I knew I had to try it because I can usually entice Dirk to eat anything that has limes in it.

After looking over the ingredients list, I realized I was going to make quite a few changes to the recipe both for cost purposes and our personal preferences. We don't do spicy and I didn't want to buy a can of chipotle chiles to barely use any. I already had the Pace Salsa Verde on hand from making these very yummy baked taquitos. The smokiness from the smoked paprika in the salsa was a good replacement for the chipotle chiles with little to no heat added. I highly suggest that you buy the salsa and make the taquitos another night, they're so easy and SO yummy!!!

The best part of this meal is that it is versatile, you can add whatever frozen veggies you have on hand although our mixture was so yummy!

Mexican Chicken Lime Soup
inspired by Rachel Ray
Yields 6 servings

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
6 cloves of garlic, chopped
3-4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 cup Pace Salsa Verde (see above notes for another, super yummy, use for this salsa)
6 cups chicken broth
Trader Joe's fire-roasted corn (or any bag of frozen corn), I just "eyeballed" it, about half a bag
1 regular sized can black beans
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Juice of 2 limes
Salt and Pepper
1 hass avocado, thinly sliced lengthwise into 12 pieces (or 2 avocados sliced thicker...we love avocados!)
Crushed tortilla chips
shredded cheddar cheese, mexican blend or cotija cheese (optional)

Directions:
In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, lower the heat to medium and cook until the onion begins to brown, about 7 minutes. Remove the sauteed garlic and onion onto a plate. Increase the heat to high, add the chicken and cook, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and onion, salsa verde and chicken broth. Once it's all mixed together add in the frozen corn and black beans. Lower the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes, skimming any foam. Stir in the cilantro and lime juice; season with salt and pepper.

Place 2 avocado slices in each of 6 soup bowls and pour in the soup. Top with the tortilla chips and shredded cheese.

Budget Cuts...Menu Planning

2011-11-06T23:55:00.000-08:00

Our grocery bill was beginning to get ridiculous and we are on family budget cuts so something needed to be done. Last month we were spending about $130 a week on groceries, that was just for food. Everyone kept telling me how their grocery bill has also gone up so I just accepted it, but after looking at our recent spending we decided that we needed to cut our grocery bill. I am happy to say, that for the past three weeks, our highest grocery bill was $103 the other two weeks were in the high 80s. Our grocery bill includes breakfast, lunch and snack for 7 days and typically dinner for 6 days.

So how did I cut it down? Truth is I'm cutting coupons but I rarely use them. I have been paying attention to our local grocery ads, and have realized that my first problem was shopping at the wrong grocery store. I always had manufacturer coupons from Ralphs that were tailored to my past purchases so I figured I'd be saving the most there but I have learned that Vons has the best sales on meat and produce which are our two biggest expenses. I pretty much only buy things on sale and have been saving about 30% each week, with very minimal coupons. I am also happy to say that while our meals are much less "fancy" we are still eating very few processed foods and getting our veggies and fruits in. We are learning that we don't buy fruits, veggies or meat because they sound good, but rather because they are on sale.

I know I had mentioned that I was going to do a recipe link up but in looking around the internet, there are already a ton of link ups out there and being honest with you, and myself, I'm not going to be able to commit to doing something every single week without fail. It's just not realistic for me right now. With that said, my plan is to share our menu for the coming up week as frequently as possible and give an update from the previous weeks menu. I have really loved reading these posts on other blogs and have start pinning some recipes from them.

Okay, so here's our menu for this week:

Sunday:

Mexican Chicken Soup (recipe to follow tomorrow)

Monday:

Pork Chops with Chimichurri Sauce (Food Network)
Garlic Rice Pilaf (one of my favorite side dishes, from Annie's Eats)
Green Beans

Tuesday:

Apple Cider Chicken (Food Network)
Mashed Potatoes
Broccoli

Wednesday:

Asian Turkey Meatballs w/ Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce (The Girl Who Ate Everything)
Brown Rice

Thursday:

Family Dinner

Friday:

Pizza

Saturday:

Friend's wedding

I am linked up to I'm an Organizing Junkie, great blog if you haven't checked it out yet!

Potty Training Update

2011-11-01T11:25:00.000-07:00

Potty training is going great! I decided not to do any of the "shotgun" potty training methods, mainly because we didn't have three days in a row that we could dedicate to potty training until December.

Day One: For most of the day, I kept her in just a long sleeve shirt and socks, no pants and no panties. I put her on the potty every half hour and gave her lots of liquids. We didn't have any pee pee accidents. I did catch her right as she started to poo (luckily with panties on) and quickly got her on the potty but it was a little too late. She wore a pull-up for nap and woke up dry. We had her MyGym party that night so I put her in a diaper around 5 when we left.

Day Two: I couldn't handle just sitting in the living room potty training any longer so we went upstairs so that I could clean. She did okay but got caught up playing and peed on the floor. The good news was that she told me right away, "uh-oh!" so it was obvious that she understood that she had peed. Other than that we had a good potty day.

Day Three: We didn't do any potty training. We went to church, came home, had lunch, she napped for three hours!!!! and then we had dinner and a movie night with my family so there wasn't any time for potty training. I was worried this would set her back but it didn't.

Day Four: We were back to hard core potty training. She told me five times she had to potty, one of which was a poo! I was so excited, as was she BUT as soon as she saw it in the potty she was totally disgusted and was not happy about it. We didn't have any accidents. :)

So far I have learned that:
1. M&Ms and stickers are great incentives, especially when your child has never had a piece of candy in her life. She picks a sticker and gets one M&M every time she goes in the potty.

2. I may feel like a crazy person, but every time she goes in the toilet it's like a big party. She loves it and totally joins in.

3. It's fun for her to tell others what she's doing and letting them celebrate with her. For example, when we see my mom I say, "Makenzie, tell Grammy what you did in the potty today." and Kenzie says with bright eyes, "Poo poo in the toilet!" and then my mom gets all excited. It makes Makenzie proud again of her accomplishments and keeps the enthusiasm up.

4. Potty training is not convenient. You have to stop whatever your doing when you hear the word, "potty!" even if that means that you have to jump out of the shower, mid shower, dripping wet to help your kid on the potty. Heh.

5. Consistency is key, but if an occasional diaper or pull-up gets wet, it's not the end of the world.

We definitely don't have it down pat, but we're getting there. Makenzie definitely understands what the urge to potty is and I think that's more than half the battle. I'll keep you updated as time goes on.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T13:38:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited for all of the holidays this year. Last year was exciting as they were all of Makenzie's "firsts" but this year she understands everything so much better and it's SO much fun!

Earlier this month we went to the pumpkin patch. Unfortunately Makenzie wasn't feeling well so she didn't enjoy everything as much as I thought she would but we were able to get a few cute pics.

On Friday we went to the MyGym Halloween party (my mom made Makenzie's awesome Rapunzel "wig" isn't it cute???). Makenzie was in shock with the giant crowd there so we weren't able to get a great picture but here she is. Tonight we're going to our church's Hallelujah Night to hang out with our family and friends so hopefully we'll have some better pictures from tonight.

I hope you all have a fun and safe Halloween!

Potty Training!

2011-10-25T12:29:00.000-07:00

13 pairs of toddler panties size 2T (Minnie Mouse, Tangled and Yo Gabba Gabba), 4 potty books borrowed from the library, a pack of Target brand pull-ups, and glittery sticker incentives. All of this can only mean one thing....it's time to potty train!!!

I have been putting this off for long enough. Makenzie was ready for this about two months ago but I wasn't, and really still am not, but here we go anyway. To prepare for the real potty day we've been reading the potty books, we bought the panties together at Target, we've been talking a lot about going potty on the toilet and we've been taking Makenzie's Violet puppy to the potty.

Makenzie still goes potty on the toilet before her bath, just as she's been doing since she was 9 months old.

So this Friday begins our adventures in Potty Training. I read "The Potty Boot Camp" by Suzanne Riffel but wasn't a big fan of the "potty drills" that she uses when they have an accident so I think we're just gonna take a combo of several methods and try it out. We'll be focusing on potty training for three days straight, nothing else. We'll see how it goes! Pray for us!

Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with a Cinnamon Buttercream & a Salted Caramel Drizzle

2011-10-24T22:46:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year! Time for pumpkins. I LOVE pumpkins. Pumpkin Spice lattes, pumpkin bread, pumpkin soup, pumpkin anything! Much to my chagrin, the hubby is not a big pumpkin fan. So in comes my newest "creation." Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with a cinnamon buttercream and a salted caramel drizzle.

Although none of the recipes themselves are my own creation, I did come up with overall idea. I'm not gonna lie, these cupcakes were pretty darn good and the hubby loved them as well!

The original inspiration came from I Am Baker. She made Pumpkin Caramels and Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes. I used her chocolate pumpkin cupcake recipe, frosted with a cinnamon buttercream from Fake Ginger and topped with Trader Joe's fleur de sel caramel sauce. Oh so yummy. The combination of flavors was to die for!!!

Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes
recipe from I Am Baker
Makes approx. 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups Flour
2/3 cups Cocoa
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Vanilla Yogurt
1 cup Canned Pumpkin
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
3/4 cups Butter, softened
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 1/2 cups Granulated Sugar
4 large Eggs

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325.
Line cupcake pan with liners.

In a mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about three minutes. Add in eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated. In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together, set aside. Stir yogurt, pumpkin, and vanilla extract together in a small bowl. Reduce mixer speed to low and alternately beat in the flour and yogurt mixtures in thirds, starting and ending with flour.

Bake for 18-25 minutes, depending on your oven. Remove once toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, or center springs back when touched. Let cool.

Cinnamon Buttercream
recipe from Fake Ginger

Side note: I made three batches of buttercream to frost 24 cupcakes. If you are going to frost them with a knife then you will use less but if you're using a decorating tip you will need at least two batches, but probably three. I made all three batches separately because I hate the mess that powdered sugar makes when it's too high in my mixer but you can try to double the recipe if you'd like. :)

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
3 – 4 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:
Beat butter until light and fluffy. Add sugar a 1/2 cup at a time until completely incorporated, adding up to 4 tablespoons of milk when the icing gets to thick. Add vanilla and cinnamon and beat until just combined.

When cupcakes are cooled you can frost them however you like.

Salted Caramel Drizzle
If you don't have a Trader Joe's near you, you can use another store bought caramel sauce or make your own (there are several recipes on Pinterest that don't seem too hard). If at all possible, try to find a gourmet caramel sauce, not the caramel topping you use for ice cream sundaes as it may be too sweet. Trader Joe's fleur de sel caramel sauce is uh-mazing. I seriously don't know if I'll ever try to make caramel sauce again because it's so good!

Ingredients:
Trader Joe's fleur de sel caramel sauce

Directions:
Place about 1/2 cup caramel sauce in a microwave safe dish and microwave for about 10 seconds. You want the sauce to be just thick enough to drizzle, not so hot that it is thin and melts the frosting. Once your caramel is at the desired consistency, use a spoon to drizzle the caramel on the frosting. If you want a more perfect look you could try to pipe it but that just makes more mess, and we all know that baking makes enough mess!

Enjoy!

Tot School Tuesday - 19 months

2011-10-04T23:01:00.000-07:00

Makenzie is currently 19 months old

Okay, so I know it's "Tot School Tuesday" and today is Wednesday but I'm slowly getting back on track.

This week we didn't have a theme, although Makenzie really started focusing on opposites herself. She's been comparing things with light/dark, clean/dirty and her current favorite old/new. I'm going to play off of this next week and re-emphasize her interest in opposites with some fun activities.

Back in August I saw a post on Meet the Dubiens about chalk painting, it looked easy and fun so I pinned it on my Tot School board for a later date. We tried it this week and it was just as easy and just as fun as I had hoped it would be!

All you need to do to make your own sidewalk chalk is to mix 1/4 cup cornstarch with 1/4 cup water and add some drops of food coloring, so easy, so cheap and so fun!

I love how activities often work on so much more than what you're planning for. The painting worked on fine motor skills but Makenzie also kept squatting and getting up using only her legs which helped her practice her gross motor skills and balancing.

This weekend, Makenzie "helped" Dirk and I clean our patio up, which resulted in fun water play with Daddy.

One of my absolute favorite things to do is to watch Makenzie "draw." She is now telling us what she is drawing, usually it's Elmo or an airplane. I know I've said it before but, her pencil grip is amazing! I've never taught her anything about how to hold a pen so it's totally innate for her. As a teacher, and a person who loves to write, it makes my heart happy to see her so interested in purposeful drawing. It is also interesting to watch her "writing skills" develop. She usually prefers a pen over any other writing tool. We caught her drawing like this the other day and Dirk and I both about died. Cutest thing ever!

Another activity I had pinned on Pinterest was Gak. Do you remember playing with that stuff when you were a kid? It is seriously the easiest thing to make and Makenzie loved playing with it! I got the idea from the Make It and Love It blog, which is a seriously fun blog that I just came across. She has tons of great sewing projects and other fun things to check out.

Anyway, rather than following the recipe that she posted a link to, I just put into a large bowl 1 bottle of glue, and food coloring, mixed it with a spoon and then added liquid starch to it little by little, kneading the gak each time before adding more starch. Once it was smooth and rubbery, it was time to play. Makenzie loved this stuff! (the pictures aren't very good, but you'll get the idea). The liquid starch was $2.98 at Wal-Mart and the bottle of glue was $.74 so it's a super cheap activity and the starch will last you a really long time!

So, I guess that sums up our Tot School for this week. I'm linking up to 1+1+1=1. Don't forget to check out the other Tot School links for great ideas!

Meal Planning

2011-10-03T12:11:00.000-07:00

Meal planning and grocery shopping continue to be my nemesis. I HATE it with a passion, which is ironic because I LOVE to cook and surely you can't cook without a meal plan and groceries. After posting on Facebook about how much I hate planning meals and grocery shopping many people shared their same frustration. I know that there are a million recipe blogs with awesome recipes but sometimes it's just frustrating to go through them and figure out what you want to make and try not to spend your life savings on groceries.

I'm going to try posting a few meals that we had the previous week and thought that maybe you'd want to do the same. I'm not going to take fancy pics, just pics with my iPhone, then I'll post the pics and a link to the recipe or post the recipe if it's not online. I would LOVE for you to share with us as well, even if they are the simplest meals ever, we may not have thought to do what you're doing in your kitchen. All you need to do is post on your blog and then fill out the form at the bottom of the weekly post. I think that this will be a great way to share what we're making for dinner and maybe help us get out a dinner rut. This is totally a trial, so we'll see how it goes.

Okay so these were a few of last weeks meals that we loved:

Annie's Eats Crispy Baked Chicken with Teriyaki Sauce (see the recipe I used for Teriyaki below), served with brown rice and green beans sauteed with salt and pepper and sprinkled with parmesan cheese at the end.

Easy Teriyaki Sauce
from Once Upon a Dream

1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chopped green onion
2 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/8 cup cold water

Directions
Combine first 7 ingredients in a small sauce pan. Heat just until it starts to bubble.
In a small bowl combine the corn starch and 1/8 cup of cold water and stir well.
Add the corn starch mixture to the sauce and heat while stirring until sauce thickens, this will be very fast.
Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

***

Balsamic Roasted Chicken from Gena Knox. The only change I made to this recipe was that I added extra carrots and potatoes because I knew we would want more than it called for.

***

Whole Foods Baked Chicken with Spinach, Pears and Blue Cheese; served with quinoa. (This picture doesn't do it justice, if you want a better picture go to the Whole Foods site, it was SO SO yummy! Dirk said one of the best meals I've made in awhile) Oh, and the recipe calls for the pears to be peeled but they had the peel on them in the picture so I left the peel on and it was great!

I do hope that you'll link up. I'd love some more dinner ideas!!!

Tot School Tuesday - Catching Up

2011-09-26T22:17:00.000-07:00

Makenzie is currently 18.5 months

Here's what we've been up to in my absence:

We've read lots of books. Makenzie is becoming increasingly interested in "reading" them on her own and says that parts that she knows by heart.

We played outside with water balloons. First, "free play."

and then target practice

We also made a "purple cat" from Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See? It started off great!

But when the glue got sticky and the tissue paper started sticking to her hands, it was time for a meltdown.

She's getting so much better with her hands being dirty but this was asking too much.

I also bought the Melissa & Doug Abby & Emma Deluxe Magnetic Dress-Up. I've had my eye on it for a long time but finally bought it the other day.

I gave Makenzie a cookie sheet to use as a magnetic board. She spent quite a while playing with the dolls. It seemed like her favorite part was putting the tiny shoes on the board.

It was a bad day to introduce the set though because she's getting her darn canines and is putting everything in her mouth like she did when she was a baby.

So these were our "organized" activities the past few weeks. I am really going to try to get back to blogging and Tot School. I have some activities and recipes that I'm dying to share! Also don't forget to check out 1+1+1=1 for more great Tot School Ideas!

Tot School Tuesday: Learning Colors with "Brown Bear, Brown Bear"

2011-08-30T13:11:00.000-07:00

Makenzie is currently 18 months old

I know it's been a few weeks. We have been SO busy and just haven't had much time to do organized Tot School activities. We had some close friends come stay with us for a few days which was SO much fun, then we had Dirk's 10 year high school reunion, and dinners with the faculty for Dirk's new job and now we're getting ready for my cousin's wedding, which both Makenzie and I are in. So much fun, but SO busy!!!

We've still been working on colors. One thing I have noticed is that focusing on one color, causes Makenzie to say that everything is that one color, so instead of focusing on one color I've just been exposing her to lots of colorful activities where we can talk about which color is which.

One of her favorite things to do now is to point out colors. At the front and back of Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See? there are stripes of painted colors and Makenzie loves to sit in the rocking chair and name each color on the front pages. She does really well, except that she gets brown and red confused.

We've also been reading Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See. This is one of the books that I had put away for awhile because it has been Makenzie's absolute favorite book since she was like 5 months old. If she was ever crying I could read that to her and it would calm her right down but because she loves it SO much, she would only ask for that book and showed no interest in any other books. When I got it back out she was SO excited and we have been reading it...A LOT!

We also started doing an art project with the characters from Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See.

I traced the brown bear from the book (we have the board book so the image is smaller than the actual book), then I copied over it with black marker. She finger painted it with chocolate pudding.

And of course ate some.

We also have been doing a lot of coloring. Makenzie has been coloring for quite awhile now but she's really starting to love it and asks to do it just about every day. It's so fun to see the progression of her drawing. Watching her go from loosely holding a crayon around 12 months to making random scribbles, to now writing with purpose.

As a teacher, it's so much fun to watch the progression. This is stuff I know in my head but to see it progress is quite fascinating. And look at that amazing "pencil grip!" Writing is obviously innate for her because I never taught her how to properly hold her crayons or pencils and she's pretty darn close to having a perfect grip.

On the iPad, Makenzie has been playing with the Flashcards by Parents Magazine. The quiz part is great as it shows four colors and asks you to find a specific color. Makenzie does pretty well at it.

Next week should be a more calm week so hopefully I'll have more to share! Thanks for staying tuned through our little hiatus.

Also, don't forget to check out 1+1+1=1 for some more awesome Tot School ideas!!!

Using Shutterfly as a Souvenir

2011-08-16T13:34:00.000-07:00

I have shared several times how much I LOVE Shutterfly! I have made Photo Books from My Publisher and Snapfish but Shutterfly is by far my favorite and the only site I use now. Remember the Shutterfly picture book table at Makenzie's Ultimate Baby Playdate? That was a big hit!

Also, last Christmas, we ordered our Christmas Cards from Shutterfly

and gave mugs away to our moms (and bought one for myself). I think this year I might make a calendar with all of her sweet pictures.

While we were at Sea World a few weeks ago, I was trying to find a souvenir for Makenzie that would really remind her of Sea World. With her being so small, I couldn't find anything that I really wanted. I was a little bummed when we left but when we came home I decided to make a Shutterfly book for her.

I wrote the book as if it were a Children's Picture book.

Makenzie loves it and asks us to read it to her all the time. I love that she will always have this as a memory of her first trip to Sea World.

I would love to be a scrapbooker, but I just never find time to do it and don't have anywhere to contain the mess it makes. Shutterfly has been the perfect solution to that. Right now they have 15%-30% off their photo books so it's a perfect time to get one started for yourself.

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Tot School - Colors

2011-08-09T14:50:00.000-07:00

Makenzie is currently 17 months old

So we're starting a new theme, which is "Colors."

I started off by trying to determine if she could differentiate and name the colors. I showed her three pieces of colored construction paper, pointed to each and said it's name several times, then had her point with me and say it's name.

Ideally this would be done with Montessori color tablets but I'm not ready to invest in those quite yet. Anyway, Makenzie was able to point to the colors I named after doing this repeatedly. It's obvious that she's able to differentiate between colors but whenever you ask her, "What color is that?" She says, "blue." If I tell her the correct color name she will repeat the correct color name and then I'll ask again, "What color is that?" and again she says, "blue." This is just like when I would say, "Makenzie, a tiger says, 'rawr' Can you say, 'rawr?'" And she would just laugh. Then we went to her 15 month doctor appointment and the doctor asked Makenzie to say various animal noises when she said, "What does a tiger say?" and Makenzie says, "rawr." I just looked at her, smiled and shook my head. I'm sure that this is just the beginning of her "playing" me.

Okay, enough stories. After doing this I decided that this week I just wanted to expose her to a lot of different colors and casually talk about them.

So, the first thing we did was ice painting.

This is another activity that you probably have all the materials for right now. The day before the activity I filled an ice cube tray with water and added a few drops of food coloring, then popped it in the freezer.

The next day I gave Makenzie one of Dirk's old white t-shirts and the ice cubes and we painted the shirt with them. I'm planning on using the shirt as a coverup for art activities but you can use whatever white material you have on hand. I was worried that Makenzie's hands were going to be stained but the colored washed right off of her hands.

You can also use frozen paint that you've watered down if you don't think your little one will eat it.

I saw some Crayola Bathtub Crayons at Target and we have used them every day this week. Makenzie loves to color with them. We also play a fun game where I ask her to find a specific color and she searches under the water for that color.

Lastly, we played with shaving cream. This was a hit! I was so surprised how quickly Makenzie started to play with it, I didn't have to encourage play at all.

I taped a black trash bag onto her table, and squirted almost a full can of shaving cream on the table. At first she just played with it. Then I put a few drops of red food coloring in the shaving cream (all of these pics are from my iPhone, sorry).

Then I gave her a red teething ring and a red shovel to use in the shaving cream although they were immediately immersed in the shaving cream and couldn't get a good picture of them.

Although this looks like a hot mess, it only took me 5 minutes to clean up. Shaving cream is SO easy to clean up!

Along with many other books we read this week, we read

So that was our week with Tot School. Don't forget to check out 1+1+1=1 for more great ideas!

How do I start "Tot School?"

2011-08-08T09:47:00.000-07:00

I have received several e-mails and Facebook messages from Mommies just like you who are asking, "Tot School looks awesome but I'm so overwhelmed! How do I start?" I'm no expert, because I just started myself, but I am an expert on being completely overwhelmed! I looked into Tot School for about 2 months before I started anything. I would hop on the computer and peruse my favorite sites like 1+1+1=1 and Chasing Cheerios and think, "Man, what they're doing is awesome but how do I start?" After awhile I would get so overwhelmed that I would just ignore it all together. Then repeat the same process a week or so later.

So, I'm guessing that your overwhelmed by some of the same things I was:

I don't have any of the tools needed to start.
I don't have any money to buy any of the tools needed to start.
What am I even supposed to do?
Where's the Motrin? I have a headache....

Let's address each of these:

First of all, "I don't have the tools needed and I don't have the money to buy tools." I'm not going to tell you that you don't have to spend money. You will have to spend a little but when I say a little, I mean, a little. I figure I spend about $5 a week on things for Tot School and that may not be necessary for everyone. Most of the tools I have used, thus far, are cheap. I peruse the dollar section at every store I go to and I visit the dollar stores. When you see something cheap, colorful and fun think, "What can I do with this?" The Target dollar section has become my best friend. Also, you can buy lots of fun stuff from Oriental Trading for really cheap. But what do you really need? Let's look at the next question...

Where do I start???
My best advice is to just start. If you're like me, you are probably on information overload. These ladies on these sites that you're visiting have been doing Tot School for quite some time, your Tot School will not look that great on your first attempt. Do you remember my first Tot School post, only 6 weeks ago? The pictures were taken with my iPhone, Makenzie was in her pajamas and the activities were fine, but nothing super cool. My best advice: choose one or two fun activities and do them! Do a collage with things you found on a walk or at the beach; play with play-doh, exploring the textures that household items make; get a big plastic box and play in the water, if you have older kids find things that float and sink and try to guess if an object will float or sink before you put it in; bust out some pudding or yogurt painting; pour a bag of rice into a container, hide mini pom-poms under the rice and let your little one use a spoon to excavate them; the list could go on and on. As soon as you start doing something, anything, you will get excited, your creative juices will start flowing and you'll be thinking of new things all the time. Eventually, after a few weeks, you can start focusing on a theme and getting into a routine but for now, just start! Remember the whole goal is to play! The objectives and "lessons" will come later, just play!

Now, about that headache. I hope that I have helped to ease some of the overwhelming sensations you were feeling. Getting ideas is great but where do you keep them all??? Start a Pinterest!!! I have more invites to pass out so if you need an invite leave a comment on this post with your e-mail address and I'll send you one. Pinterest is great because as you're perusing the blogs you can "pin" a photo which will in turn save that photo directly to a board you've created on Pinterest. When you're looking for activities you can just go on your Pinterest and see what you've already pinned. You can also search for kid's activities as well. Pinterest is now my first go to source for anything from "What's for dinner?" to "What should I wear?" to "What should I do?" and on and on and on. I LOVE Pinterest!!!! Here is a screen shot of part of my Tot School pin board on Pinterest.

Lastly, here are some of my favorite blogs for getting ideas:
1+1+1=1
Chasing Cheerios
The Imagination Tree
Childhood 101 Playopedia
Delightful Learning
The Crafty Crow
I Can Teach My Child
Play Create Explore

I am in no way trying to be an expert on Tot School, I have a long way to go but I thought that if there are a few people with questions, then maybe there are more people with questions. If you have more specific questions I'd love to try to answer them for you, just comment or click on my profile to shoot me an e-mail.

This Week in Pictures

2011-08-05T08:42:00.000-07:00

Top: Enjoying Gerber cheese puffs which she loves but rarely gets, Our painted blue toe nails (I'm not crazy about the color but she had to have the same color as I had), Cute pic before bed

Bottom: Bath crayons, Caramel Brownies, Enjoying breakfast and watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

The Day My Daughter Saved Me From A Bee

2011-08-04T16:03:00.000-07:00

Today Makenzie and I went outside to play. We played with her water table for a little while then we played with some chalk. I wrote her name on the sidewalk and pointed to the "M" and asked her what it was she said, "B." I said, "Silly girl, you know that's an "M." Then she said, "B" again. I looked up at her and saw that she was pointing elsewhere and saying "bee." I said, "Oh do you want me to draw a bee?" She looked at me with a frown, and said, "bee." Finally, she realized that her dense mother was not going to listen to her so she got up and walked toward me, pointed to my shoe and said, "Bee!" I said, "Makenzie, there's no bee." As I said that, I looked down at my feet.

I was squatting with my toes bent so my flip flops weren't touching the bottom of my feet and sure enough there was a bee (actually I think it is some other sort of stinging creature because it doesn't look like a bee) on my flip flop. Had I stepped down I for sure would have been stung. My smart girl saved my foot from being stung!

Somebody get this girl a peach pop!

Caramel Brownies

2011-08-02T23:14:00.000-07:00

I have expressed my admiration for Annie's Eats before. I have made many of her recipes and have loved every single one of them. Well her recipe for caramel brownies have sent it over the top. These are good, I mean really really good. I'm not the best judge of how good they are because, while I think they are delicious, I can only eat a few bites before it is just utterly too much for me. But let me tell you, every person that has ever tried these brownies, has fallen head over heels for them. I have never had such rave reviews over anything I've made as I have for these. While they are easy to make it does take quite some time to allow them to bake and cool, etc. It's not all time that you have to be in the kitchen just don't expect to pop them in the oven and have them ready to go to a party in an hour, it'll be more like two hours or so.

When it comes to buying the ingredients, I highly suggest that you don't skimp on them. It may cost a few extra bucks for the higher end ingredients but I believe it really made a difference in the taste, trust me.

Caramel Brownies
Ingredients:

For the brownies:
foil
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
12 oz. Ghiradelli's bittersweet chocolate morsels (the stupid bag is 11.5 oz so you'll have to buy two bags but I promise you, you will want to make these again...soon)
1½ cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp. salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

For the caramel filling:
14 oz. Werther's chewy caramels, unwrapped (make sure you specifically get "chewy caramels"and not the "caramelts" or something else) If you can't find these, the KRAFT caramels or any other soft caramel will work.
1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with foil, make sure you smooth out any creases that are sticking out as they will get stuck in the caramel part of the brownie. Grease the foil well with butter. Combine the 2 sticks of butter and the bittersweet chocolate in a heatproof bowl, set over a pan of simmering water (a stand mixer bowl is perfect for this but any heatproof bowl will work). Heat, stirring occasionally, until completely melted and smooth. Remove the bowl from the heat. Whisk in the sugar, eggs and vanilla until incorporated. Stir in the flour and salt just until combined. Spread about half of the brownie batter, usually about 2 cups, in the bottom of the prepared pan in an even layer. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, maintaining the oven temperature, and let cool for 20 minutes.

When the brownies have about 10 minutes left to cool, re-grease the sides of the pan with butter, this will allow the brownies to separate from the foil, perfectly. Now it's time to make the caramel. Combine the caramel candies and cream in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Heat, stirring frequently, until melted and smooth. Immediately spread the caramel mixture over the bottom brownie layer. Pour the remaining brownie batter over the caramel layer, taking care to pour (or spoon) and spread it evenly, otherwise it will be difficult to spread evenly over the caramel layer. Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top of the final brownie layer. Bake for 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for about 15 to 30 minutes. Place the brownies in the freezer for 30 - 45 minutes. Remove from the freezer and immediately lift the brownies from the pan using the edges of the foil. Remove the foil and cut the brownies into individual squares. Store in an airtight container.

Tot School Tuesday - Sea World

2011-08-02T12:52:00.000-07:00

We didn't really do any Tot School last week. We did MyGym, went to our last Girl Talk Bible study in the OC and then Sea World!!! Makenzie had a great time at Sea World. It was so awesome to watch her take it all in and even more awesome to see her match all that we've been learning with real life experiences. She had the vocabulary to express what she was seeing and what she wanted more of. It was almost like an informal assessment of our Ocean Unit. So much fun! Here is an overview from our trip.

Kenzie never wanted to be in stroller so we all took turns walking her around the park. Here she is with my two handsome brothers.

We tried to get Kenzie to touch the star fish but she wasn't having anything to do with it. Surprise, surprise...heh.

She loved the sea turtles.

Dolphins!

One of my favorite parts was watching Makenzie make the noises that the seals and sea lions were making...too cute.

Kenzie's favorite was a toss up between the turtles and the polar bears. She spent quite awhile watching the polar bears.

She fell in love with a stuffed polar bear on our way out so Uncle Brad had to buy it for her. She is SO tired in this picture.

We saw a ton of other things but I don't want to bore you with all the photos. Overall, she had a great time and got to experience "the ocean" in a more rich environment.

When we got home from Sea World there was a freak summer thunderstorm, which NEVER happens in So. Cal. We took advantage of the weather and played chalk in the rain, in our pajamas. It was so much fun!

Tot School Tuesday - 16.5 months

2011-07-26T13:18:00.000-07:00

This is the last week of our Ocean Theme. We really didn't do many new activities related to the ocean this week but we continued with some of the activities that we had previously done.

This week at at MyGym was Pirate Week and the adventure for this week was an ocean themed play tent. So fitting!

It was so great to see Makenzie interact with the activity and name many of the stuffed animals that were on the floor to play with.

This week I also started to emphasize more household responsibilities. I bought a watering can at the Dollar Tree and Makenzie waters our plants with me.

I just have to note that those play shorts were on the Target sale rack for $1.12. I was so excited. Unfortunately they only had one pair in her size (the rest were too small) but I'll take what I can get. :)

Makenzie has also been eating all of her meals at her new table. After she eats I give her a wet paper towel and she wipes down her table.

Usually most of the mess is still there after she's done but it does give her a sense of responsibility. In this picture she decided to put a piece of watermelon in her mouth while she was cleaning, I guess she wasn't finished with that piece. Also, I read once that it is important to not redo a task that a child does because they will get the impression that it's pointless to do it or, to do it well, if Mom is just going to do it again anyway. Of course I can't leave her table a mess but I don't wash it off myself until she is distracted doing something else.

Also, this week I introduced chalk for the first time.

We just had a pest control guy come out and spray for ants so I haven't been able to hose down the mess from the soap mud, which is in the background. I really wanted to spray down the whole patio and use the chalk on the water but I didn't want to wash away the ant spray so instead I just filled a pitcher with water and poured it in a small area. Makenzie still enjoyed it like that. I love the vibrancy of the chalk when it's wet and it's a lot easier for Makenzie to color with.

This weekend we took another trip to the beach and Makenzie made some real progress. She loved the water as always and she didn't completely freak out when her feet were sandy. She still wouldn't play in it but we're making progress!

She also willingly got her hands dirty for the pudding painting activity. If you missed this activity you can see it here.

My favorite part of the pudding painting was that Makenzie really enjoyed smelling the different puddings. It was the first activity that her sense of smell was really involved.

Finally, I learned the biggest lesson this week: Don't underestimate your child's ability. I remember when Makenzie started to roll over at 2 months, people didn't believe me. It wasn't that she was super baby but instead that I gave her the tummy time she needed and assisted her in rolling over, finally at 2 months old she rolled over all by herself and continued to do so, all the time. I've been seeing a lot of color sorting activities on various blogs but I just didn't think Makenzie was ready for that yet, I was very wrong. This week I decided to give it a try but didn't expect that she'd do much with it.

I demonstrated how to sort a few blocks and then put them back in the bowl and handed them to her. She was so cute repeating how I had demonstrated for her, saying, "hmmmm..." and then putting the shape on the proper color. I was so surprised that she did it! She can sort red, yellow, orange, blue and green but I only hand her three colors at a time so that she isn't overwhelmed. We have done this every day and she gets excited every time I get it out. The moral of this story is, try things, challenge your little ones. The worst that could happen is that he/she isn't ready for it and you put it away and try again in a month or so.

So that was our Tot School week. Next we're going to be working on colors, or a color. I haven't fully planned yet but I'm looking forward to switching themes. Thanks for following along with us! Don't forget to check out the 1+1+1=1 blog for more great Tot School ideas for all ages!

Sensory Pudding Paint

2011-07-24T22:59:00.000-07:00

Before I begin, I must make a quick disclaimer. I am trying to learn how to use our darn DSLR but when the hubby isn't home I try to figure out the best settings to use. A lot of these pictures have some focus issues, which I later learned is because I was in the wrong setting. I apologize in advance. :)

One thing you may not know about me is that before I got my BA and teaching credential, I got my Early Childhood Certificate and taught pre-school for a year. It was during my early schooling that I first learned of pudding painting.

When I was introduced to pudding painting it was typically chocolate pudding that was used. For this activity, I wanted the pudding to be bright, colorful and offer multiple sensory opportunities.

I bought some vanilla pudding cups, of course you could make the pudding as well but I chose to buy it because we were having yet another busy week. I added 3 drops of food coloring to each pudding cup and stirred.

To the green pudding, I added lime juice and lime zest to give it a tangy flavor and limey smell. To the red pudding, I added cinnamon, I just kept adding until it was fragrant. To the blue pudding, I added about 1/8 of a teaspoon, maybe a little more, of peppermint extract. Right before I gave the pudding to Makenzie I added some green decorating sugar crystals to the green pudding to give it a gritty texture.

This project covered all the senses; sight, smell, taste, touch and of course the sound of the pudding being smooshed over and over in your little one's hand. This is another activity that requires very little effort and you probably have many things in your cupboard that you could use to do this right now.

If you're having a mental block, here are some other sensory mix-in ideas: any type of extract, crushed up crackers, citrus, ground coffee (if you're brave enough to let them get close to caffeine...heh), spices, breadcrumbs, etc. Go explore your pantry!

I'll share more about how Makenzie approached the activity tomorrow for our Tot School Tuesday post.

I linked up to the Nurture Store's Play Academy Idea Swap. You should check it out for more ideas!

This Week in Pictures

2011-07-22T09:23:00.000-07:00

Top: Kenzie's new table set and felt fruit from IKEA, I made Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes, Fun with water and chalk
Bottom: Kenzie loves having the wind in her face when we're going on short drives, Painted Kenzie's toe nails for the first time, Kenzie asleep after a long day at Bible Study

Tot School Tuesday - Ocean Theme (16.5 months)

2011-07-19T00:03:00.000-07:00

Last week we continued with our ocean theme. With Disneyland on Monday, recuperating from Disneyland on Tuesday and then the Orange County Girl Talk Study on Wednesday, we were out and about a lot. We still did Tot School activities but just not as many as usual.

First off, Makenzie made an ocean collage.

I gave her a piece of white paper that I painted with glue and a plate with ripped up pieces of blue crepe paper. I showed her how to stick the crepe paper onto the white paper. She loves to "dip" right now and decided that it's more fun to dip the paper into the glue and then put it on the paper. I love when she gets her hands dirty without knowing it!

When she started to tire of that I gave her some ocean stickers and pom poms to glue on the paper.

She enjoyed this for a bit and then decided to do some glue painting.

Then of course had to see how the pom poms taste, apparently they taste great because she wouldn't stop eating them.

Then she decided that it would be fun to put stickers all over herself...

and that Daddy needed some stickers too. We were so happy to have Daddy join us for one day of Tot School!

This was such a great activity. It worked on her fine motor skills, concentration and creativity. Plus it's so fun to have something hanging on our fridge that was completely made by her.

This week she started emptying out her living room toy box, putting a blanket inside (AKA a nigh-nigh) and sitting in it, all of this without any prompting. I think I say this all the time, but I love to watch her wheels turn and wonder what is going on in her cute little head.

A few weeks ago, I bought a magnetic fish puzzle at Target. The packaging said it was for ages 3+ but I'm learning that the age ranges on toys aren't true. Anyway, Dirk untied the string to the little fishing pole so that Makenzie is able to use it more easily. This doesn't keep her attention for long but she does enjoy taking the fish out of the puzzle and it's great for her concentration.

She also started taking the fish out with her little fingernails.

Did you notice the table she's working on? We bought a new table and chairs set for her at IKEA for $19.99. Are you kidding me? I seriously love it so much and so does she.

You all saw the ocean sensory box yesterday, here's how it went down:
Initially she was excited to see the animals and named them all.

Then she decided to make Mommy uneasy by getting upset about the rice on her hands.

Luckily she quickly got over that as I pointed out the rocks in rice. Still not a fan of the rice, she took each rock out and then shook her hand on the floor to get any loose rice off of the rock.

After playing for a few minutes, she started putting the rocks in the glass container. I made sure to point out the noise that it was making.

Lastly, she found that she didn't have to get all of the rice off of the rocks and just started putting handfuls of rice in the container. It was a great way to point out the difference between the sounds of the rock against the glass and the rice against the glass.

We are going to keep this box going throughout this next week. I think as she warms up to the box she'll get into it more, or at least I hope!

We don't have any technology pics this week because the iPad is starting to cause quite the commotion with Makenzie so I'm trying to keep it hidden.

Thanks for visiting our Tot School this week. We look forward to sharing with you again next week. Don't forget to check out 1+1+1=1 for some more awesome weekly Tot School posts.

Ocean Sensory Bin

2011-07-17T22:47:00.000-07:00

Why a sensory bin?
Young children learn through play and the primary way that they learn through play is through their senses. A sensory bin engages most, if not all, of the senses: sight, touch, smell, hearing and perhaps even taste. The best thing is that these bins can be made using items you already have around your house, which means they're cheap to make, fun to use and enriching for your curious toddler's mind.

In addition to engaging the senses, sensory bins also provide ample opportunity for transferring, which is a skill that toddlers love. Transferring also has so many educational benefits. It allows practice in hand-eye-coordination, concentration and both fine and gross motor skills.

How???
You can make a sensory bin out of almost anything. You can make it themed or not. There is no pressure and really no right or wrong. As your making your bin think of your child's interests. Try to find things that meet at least the sight, touch and hearing categories.

What do I need?

A box or bin. I bought the colored bin you see at Target in the dollar section for $2.50 but you can use anything you have at home! A pie tin, shoe box, bowl, whatever you have on hand.
Some type of medium to put in your bin. This can be rice, dried beans, unpopped popcorn, shredded toilet paper, shaving cream, pasta, sand, etc.
Objects. Think of different textures (shiny, dull, scratchy, smooth, hard, soft, etc.) I know we all have "junk drawers." Go through your junk drawer, your craft stuff, your garage. You'll be amazed with what you can find, I know I was! Some specific examples, in case your still at a loss: nuts and bolts; foil; coins; cotton balls; sand paper; rocks; tissue paper; bubble wrap; packing peanuts; tape.....
Tools and containers. Although not pictured here, you'll want tools and extra containers. The tools can be as simple as a spoon or as complex as child chopsticks or mini tongs. For the extra containers, it is great to have various materials, such as metal, plastic, wood, glass, etc. Much of the hearing aspect of a sensory bin comes from dropping one object into another and differentiating between the sounds.
If you have older children playing with the sensory bins, hide some of the objects inside the bin. Create cards that have the hidden objects and ask them to find the objects and match them to the cards.

There are so many things you can do with these bins and watching what your children do with them is even greater.

I made the bin, now what?
Now it's time to play! Choose a spot where you want your child to play with it. Remember it will get messy and you're not going to redirect your child so that they don't make a mess. Choose somewhere where you can clean it up with some ease. You can even use trash bags or an old sheet or blanket to cover the area where they will play.

If your child is like mine and is a little apprehensive about getting her hands dirty, sit down and ooh and ahh over the box. Play with it yourself. Point out the different items in the box. Once your child is playing with the box, allow them to freely explore without interruption, unless they're putting something in their mouth they shouldn't be! This is a time for them to "work." I think you will be amazed by how focused your child will be and how they have put themselves to the task of playing. I just marvel at Makenzie and wonder what is going through her little brain.

REMEMBER: THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR YOU TO LEAVE! There are small objects in the box that you want your child to explore but not to choke on. While you shouldn't interrupt their time, you also shouldn't be using this time to get a task done. Just sit back and watch them play and marvel at the amazing little person that they are. If they seem to tire of it quickly, offer some suggestions, show them another way they can play with it. This is a fun experience!

I know, this post is like forever long and there's not a lot of pictures but I just wanted to break this box down for you. It is ocean themed in preparation of our trip to Sea World in a couple weeks. Here's what I used, along with how much I spent. This is based on what I already had in my house.

Bin ($2.50 - Target)
Colored Rice
Lime Zest
rocks ($1.50 - IKEA)
Fish stickers, placed on a piece of paper and cut out so they aren't sticky anymore. ($2 - Toys-R-Us)
Ocean bath toys (already had these)
Walrus and coral (from the ocean set I already had)
Glitter foam starfish (traced stars on leftover glitter foam from Makenzie's Birthday Party)

Come back tomorrow to see how much Makenzie loved the box!

If you'd like to see some more great ideas check out...you guessed it...1+1+1=1. She has made some great sensory bins.

Tot School Tuesday - 16 months

2011-07-12T22:38:00.000-07:00

Summer is in full swing in the Dallas household which means that a lot of our Tot School activities are being done outside and at various, fun locations.

To start the week off we went to the splash pad. A good friend of ours just recently introduced us to the splash pad and Makenzie just loves it! I love to see her interacting with the other kids and establishing her independence, obviously the water activities are a lot of fun too!

Makenzie has also been going to MyGym for a few months now. I can totally see an improvement in her gross motor skills as well as her confidence. One of her favorite activities seems to be the steps. She can now walk independently up and down, which is a big improvement for her. I need to take my point-and-shoot camera into MyGym sometime but for now this is all I have.

For some fine motor practice I modified the spaghetti and shaker activity by switching out the spaghetti with pipe cleaners. If you remember from my first Tot School post, my smarty pants girl decided that instead of sticking the whole piece of spaghetti in the jar she would break them into small pieces. Of course this still worked on her fine motor skills but made the activity a lot easier. With the pipe cleaners Makenzie was forced to stay focused as she tried to put that long piece into the small hole.

Our big activity this week was soap mud!

When I saw this posted on The Imagination Tree, I knew I had to make it. For the next few weeks we're going to be working with ocean animals in preparation for our trip to Sea World. My goal is to frontload the ocean vocabulary so that Makenzie will have a better understand of what she is experiencing at Sea World. The set of ocean animals I bought is way bigger than I hoped but they're making do.

I tried to get Makenzie involved in making the mud (directions here) but she wanted nothing to do with it. Then when I set it outside to play, she still wanted nothing to do with it. This girl literally HATES to have her hands dirty. I sat with her for 10 minutes playing in the mud, covering myself in it, trying everything I could to get her to play. When I hid the sea animals in the mud and asked her to find them, she just looked at me and laughed and then looked at my hands and of course said, "Uh-oh, mess." Finally it dawned on me, maybe if I brought out a bowl of water and she saw that she could wash her hands whenever she wanted then she'd be okay with it. Praise the Lord it worked. It sounds like such a small thing but I was seriously praying that she'd play with it. I don't want her fear of dirty hands and feet to interfere with her explorations and learning experiences.

As you can, see she was eventually fully immersed in the mud and I couldn't have been happier! The mud is super easy and cheap to make but it does make quite a mess since it's just soap and toilet paper but they do end up smelling so clean afterward. Heh.

To keep with our theme we have also been reading one of Makenzie's favorite books:

I had put this book away for awhile so that we could move on to other books. She was so excited when I brought it back out. She can fill in some of the words herself. It's a fun book with rhymes and introductions to quite a few different sea animals.

Finally, this week we played with two apps. One of them is the "Wheels on the Bus" app. Makenzie loves this app and sings along with it the best she can.

The other app that we both love but is sadly no longer available, is an app called Baby's First Words. I apparently didn't take a picture of Makenzie playing with this one but she loves it! Basically it just shows a real life picture of an object or animal and says it's name aloud. Makenzie loves to try repeat what the lady is saying but the best part is that she knows most of the animal sounds. It's so fun to watch her make the noise for all of the animals. I was also able to use the app to make my own set of cards so I made cards with all of the ocean animals she will encounter at Sea World. I hope that there is something out there like this because it really is a great app. Anyway, that was our Tot School this week. Don't forget to check out 1+1+1=1 for more awesome Tot School ideas!

Last Minute Vacay

2011-07-12T13:00:00.000-07:00

So last Thursday my aunt called and said that she had an extra room at Disney's Paradise Pier that she wasn't able to cancel so it was just going to sit there unless we came to use it! We were beyond blessed and so excited. We weren't planning on taking Makenzie to Disneyland until next year but with this awesome opportunity and an amazing friend who was able to get us into the park for part of the day, we were able to have some sweet family time. Because of this my Tot School Tuesday post is getting postponed until tomorrow but I thought I'd share some pics from our trip. It was such an awesome experience. Seeing Disneyland through Makenzie's eyes brought out the excitement that I once had when I was a kid. Dirk and I had such a great time! Thank you SO SO much to those of you who made this happen! It was a weekend we'll never forget!


Pool at the Paradise Pier Hotel. Makenzie loved jumping off the edge.

Loved the 1 foot pool!


Waiting for the parade

Met up with my Aunt T. and cousin Missy

The Little Mermaid ride was her favorite (mine too!). Her face was like this pretty much the whole time.

And of course you can't go to Disney without a picture of the baby wiped out in her stroller.

I Surrender All

2011-07-07T08:47:00.000-07:00

Every day I feel like it's me against my world. If you saw my house you'd never know that it drives me crazy, except that you read this blog and are probably getting tired of hearing me talk about it. I've talked about so many strategies that I wanted to implement, sectional cleaning, quick clean-ups, the purpose project, etc. Although they all sounded like they'd work and I did try them all, NOTHING is working. The other day Dirk and I were talking about the mess that is our bedroom. Our bedroom is always mess because it always ends up being the place where the baskets of unfolded laundry go, then while I'm getting ready for the day Makenzie takes the clothes out of the baskets or if I'm in a hurry and looking for something I'm known to take the clothes out of the basket and not put them back in. Anyway, Dirk said let's just face the fact that we will never have folded laundry, we're just going to wear it again and wash it again, let's just keep the baskets in a nice order in our bedroom. He said that he felt like that was a perfectly good solution and was totally fine with it. To me, that was defeat. I am not good at keeping up with the laundry and lately our house has been in chaos but I will not allow this to be okay. That night I said to myself, "I'll show Dirk, tomorrow I'm going to do all of the laundry, get it put away and clean the house. I will do this!!!" Well the next day, I woke up and there were ants all over my clean kitchen. I dealt with those all day, along with an uber crabby baby and I threw my hands in the air and said, "Forget this. I am defeated. What am I going to do?"

Fast forward to a week later, our church's women's summer study, Girl Talk began yesterday. One of my absolute favorite speakers, Catherin Martin, spoke on the topic of "Experiencing the Hope of a New Day." God really spoke to me through her. I don't think that I have ever lifted up my house to the Lord. I mean, when we first moved in we prayed over the house and asked God to use it for His glory and that it would be a tool for ministry but I've never lifted up my messes to the Lord. I pray for endurance to clean the whole house, or for motivation, but never have I lifted up the messiness of the house to the Lord.

So today is a new day. I surrender all, including my very messy house. I cannot control this in my own power or might but only with the grace and power of the Lord. There is no way that this cannot work because He can do all things and I can do all things through Him.

Tot School Tuesday - 16 months

2011-07-05T12:12:00.000-07:00

Last week was a busy week. I got a bad tooth infection which meant I spent a lot of time at the dentist and a lot of time in pain, that was so bad at one point that I wished I was in labor. Thankfully I'm all fixed up now. This crazy week meant that Tot School happened, just not as organized as I hoped it would.

I introduced Makenzie to Play-Doh for the first time. She really liked it and surprised me with how well she used the cookie cutters. When I initially brought it out I just sat down with her and started playing with the Play-Doh. Moving it from one hand to another, kneading it, etc. She wasn't interested in "playing" with it much but she loved when I flattened it out. She drew on it, scratched on it, used the cookie cutters, etc.

The next day I sat her down with the Play-Doh and immediately flattened it out for her. I offered her various household items with different textures and showed her how to press them down into the Play-Doh. She really enjoyed that part.

My big undertaking this week was baking with Makenzie. I had never done it before and I knew that I was getting myself into quite a daunting task, but I also knew that she would love it and it would be a great learning experience.

First, I had her put all of the cupcake liners in the cupcake tin. I showed her how to do this once and she did a great job putting them nicely in. We had a few casualties but that's to be expected.

I also let her stir the dry ingredients after I had sifted them in the bowl.

Each time I measured an ingredient I handed her the measuring cup and let her pour it into the bowl.

She also helpled me put all of the ingredients away. Of course part of the learning experience was watching the cupcakes as they baked in the oven, seeing what they looked like when they were frosted and then...eating them! I can count on one hand how many times Makenzie has had sweets but I know that part of the whole process is getting to taste the final product. I made a mini cupcake in my mini-cupcake tin and she got to eat that after dinner. I know that she's not able to make all of the connections now but it was definitely an activity that allowed her to use all 5 senses. Of course it was also VERY messy!!!

I bought some pom-poms at Target in the $1 bins. I'm sure I will find a million things to do with them. This activity was honestly thrown together one day when I was in pain and exhausted but still wanted to interact with Makenzie. I gathered a few containers I had set aside and a paper towel tube. I showed Makenzie how the poms fit inside the paper towel and then would ask, "Her where is the ball?" She of lifted up the tube and then I said, "Peek-a-boo!" Seriously such a simple game but she had fun with it and I felt like it was at least something that I could do with her that was a little different than playing with her toys.

This week, as I already mentioned was a less organized and more spur of the moment but we still had a lot of fun. I'm really excited about the activities I have planned for this week!

This Week in Pictures

2011-07-01T09:39:00.000-07:00

Top: Kenzie fell and hit her eye; First time playing with Play-Doh; This week Kenzie enjoyed rummaging through Mommy's nightstand drawer. She found our mini wedding book and would sit and look at it for 5-10 mintues at a time.

Bottom: We went to a splash pad for our first time, it was so fun!; Makenzie helped me bake for the first time; Just Mommy and Kenzie hanging out before the splash pad.

My Nemesis: Coffee Creamer

2011-06-30T08:51:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love Coffeemate's vanilla coffee liquid creamer. It really has a lot of ingredients that I'd rather not put into my body but I just can't find another creamer that matches it's quality taste. To me, the others taste artificial and overall just bleh. I have found several recipes to make your own with real ingredients but if we're being honest, I just don't have time to do that right now, regardless of how easy it is. Welll....I went to a Target yesterday that had a grocery section and happened upon this:

Coffeemate now makes an all-natural creamer. The ingredients are non-fat milk, cream, sugar and natural vanilla flavoring. No preservatives, no high-fructose corn syrup. Now I am fully aware that it's still not "healthy" but I'm giving up soda (for the most part) so I need to have some kind of indulgence...heh.

So this stuff is really yummy and for me, it is guilt free! I have only seen it at this specific Target which is pretty stinkin' far from my house so I'm hoping that it gets more exposure to other stores because I am SO stoked about this stuff. Just thought I'd share!

Tot School Tuesday - Getting the Hang of It

2011-06-28T00:19:00.000-07:00

This week was a much better week for our Tot School. I still have a lot of work to get us to where I'd like us to be but Makenzie is learning and having fun and that's what really counts!

It was a hot week here, so we spent a few days playing with the water table and one day out at the pool. Makenzie always loves her water table, but this week I noticed her really paying attention to cause and effect and trying out various things. She intently watched the ball twist around the tube after she dropped it in...

and then tried to put a large piece in the ball tube, but obviously it didn't work...

of course, no activity is complete without a taste...

Makenzie also painted for her first time. She is currently at a phase where anything that is out of place is "a meh" (a mess). She was fine with the yellow paint but when I gave her the blue paint and she started to use it on the paper, she kept saying, "a meh, a meh." Needless to say we didn't paint for very long.

One thing I did realize was that Makenzie had more fun painting the paper plate that I used to hold the paint.

I think next time I'll either put splats of paint on paper and let her paint that way, or just let her paint a paper plate.

My big undertaking this week was a modified sensory bin. I used Pasta Barilla's stelline pasta (which are just very tiny star shaped pastas), put it in a ziploc container and hid wooden ladybugs in the pasta. I offered Makenzie a few scoopers (which are really measuring spoons that I got at the 99 cent store), a funnel and a pouring cup. With the exception of the scoopers, I had all of these things at home already. Makenzie LOVED this activity and spent probably a good 20 minutes playing with it, which is saying A LOT for a 15 1/2 month old.

It was so much fun to watch her explore and see all of the things she came up with.

One thing I do want to emphasize is that this is all about exploration. You may have an idea for how the activity should go but the point is to let your child explore the activity. Refrain from offering them activities where you will have to interrupt them or redirect them. I did have to tell Makenzie to take the ladybugs out of her mouth a few times so she didn't choke but other than that it was free play. Here's the aftermath of it all...

I highly suggest that you buy an inexpensive tablecloth for all of the activities. The one I have is one of those kinda plasticy ones with the fabric on the bottom. I use it on the table and on the floor and LOVE it! It's so versatile and easy to clean up.

Makenzie also enjoyed a new iPad app that was recommended by Carisa at 1+1+1=1. It's called "Colored Dots." It's free and so great for the little ones. At first glance it seemed super easy but Makenzie struggled with it some at first. It's definitely her go-to game now though.

And finally Makenzie and Daddy spent a few evenings working with building blocks. I love to watch her little face as she concentrates.

I'm still getting the hang of Tot School and posting about it, so thanks for sticking with me. I realize that this post was a little photo heavy so I'll try to post a little less photos next week.

Shredded Beef Tacos

2011-06-27T09:51:00.000-07:00

I LOVE Mexican food, especially shredded beef tacos!!! I have been to many Mexican restaurants and I seriously think that Miguel's Jr. has THE best shredded beef tacos (if you think otherwise, I'd love to hear where you get your shredded beef tacos from!). I've tried a few crockpot recipes for shredded beef but nothing has come close to what I consider a really yummy shredded beef taco.

One day I typed "authentic shredded beef taco" in the google search box. I clicked the first link that came up and it was the One Stop Cook blog that hadn't been updated for awhile and had a not-so-appetizing header. I have to admit that I am a recipe snob. I don't use recipes that are taken from random sources and when I use websites to get my recipes I read page after page of comments to see what people are saying and how to perfect it. If there aren't a lot of comments or ratings I usually won't try it. I'm glad that I overlooked the "cheesiness" of this blog because this post has 54 comments and all of them were really good! The recipe for the shredded beef itself is so easy and uses ingredients I almost always have on hand. I was SO pleasantly surprised and won't ever use another shredded beef recipe unless I am completely blown away.

Here are a few things you should know. Although the meat recipe is SO easy, the meat alone has to cook for 3-4 hours so make sure you're going to be home. Also, I'm sure that you could adjust this for the crockpot, I just haven't tried it. The actual making of the taco is labor intensive but you could just use your typical way of making tacos. Lastly, the tacos themselves aren't exactly the healthiest meal BUT if you eat them on occassion I'm sure you'll be just fine. :)

Okay so here's the recipe for the shredded beef. I modified the amount of salt because it was WAY too salty but other than that most of the information comes from The One Stop Cook blog.

Shredded Beef

Ingredients:
2lbs. chuck roast, 2in. cubes and trim off fat ( you can also use top or bottom round )
1/2 level tbsp. salt
1 tbsp. pepper
1 tbsp. cumin
1 1/2 tbsp. chili powder ( light or dark )
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. onion powder
4 bay leaves
1 onion ( small dice )

Directions:
Add meat, salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and bay leaves to a 3 to 5qt. pot. Add water to cover, about 1/2in. over the top of the meat and boil covered for 2 hours stirring occasionally.

Add diced onion and boil for 1 more hour covered stirring occasionally. At this point the meat should start to break down. Remove bay leaves and continue to break it down using a wooden spoon or spatula (I prefer the wooden spoon). Continue to boil uncovered until the liquid has evaporated and continue to shred the meat with the wooden spoon or spatula. At this point my meat is usually tender and the liquid has evaporated. If yours isn't, keep boiling until the liquid has evaporated.

Now if you want to take this a step further and make the tacos in the same way that the blog suggests, it is more time consuming but so yummy!

Shredded Beef Tacos

Ingredients:
2/3 head lettuce ( shredded )
2 tomatoes ( small dice )
3 oz. cheddar cheese ( shredded )
16-20 corn tortillas ( 6in. )
2-3 cups oil ( corn or vegetable )
toothpicks

Directions:
Heat oil in an 8in. cast iron skillet for more even cooking. You can use any 8in. skillet, I just like the performance of cast iron for frying. Or use a deep fryer. Never fill pan more than 1/2 full of oil, it may bubble over during cooking. Okay so my side note, I don't measure the temp of the oil, I've always cooked my tortillas in oil and so I just take a small piece of tortilla put it in the oil and if it gives a good sizzle then it's ready for me. (If you're into exacts, here are the original instructions: heat to 350 degrees. It is very important to reach 350 degrees or the tortillas will not cook right.) With a pair of tongs place 1 tortilla into the oil and fry for about 3-5 seconds, just long enough to make the tortillas pliable and easy to work with. Repeat process until all tortillas are cooked, stack them on a plate, flip the entire stack over and get ready for assembly.

Note: Always be careful when using hot oil it can be very dangerous if not handled properly.

Assembly:
Take about 2 to 3oz. of shredded beef and place on upper half of the tortilla. Fold the tortilla in half and insert 2 toothpicks. Kind of like sewing. Repeat until all of the tacos are done. You might want to turn the heat down on the oil while doing this. (If this is confusing, go to the original post so you can see his assembly pictures.)

Cooking:
Take 2 to 3 tacos at a time and place into 350 degree oil and cook for about 1 to 3 minutes a side, or until crispy. You might notice after a batch or two that the oil will lower in temperature. There is something called “recovery time” when using hot oil. This is caused by putting a cool product into something hot.

Remove tacos and let stand for 1 minute. Remove toothpicks, open and add shredded lettuce, cheese and diced tomatoes. You’re ready to eat!

This Week in Pictures

2011-06-24T09:03:00.000-07:00

Top Row: Makenzie enjoying some grub at the IE Food Truck Fest, Father's Day, Kenzie gubbin' on a rib
Bottom Row: Bedtime story with Daddy, Self-feeding oatmeal, Trying to stay cool when our car broke down in the heat of the day

Tot School Tuesday

2011-06-20T22:13:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I am starting to get things set up for Tot School and will be linking up to 1+1+1=1. I'm still working on getting a schedule going and figuring out how to make this work the best for us. You will notice that Makenzie is in her jammies in all of the pictures this week. I tend to introduce new activities early in the morning when she is still in jammies. I promise this will not always be the case. You'll also notice that the pictures are mostly from iPhone and I also promise that my pictures won't always be from the phone.

So what'd we do this week?

A few weeks ago I found a CM School Supply gift card that I still had from my "teaching days." It had $33 on it so Makenzie and I took a trip there. One of the things I bought was this Melissa & Doug Jumbo Knob Wooden Farm Puzzle. Initially Makenzie liked the animals and would say their sounds but didn't know how to use it. Dirk's been working with her and this week she finally got the hang of it and really had fun with it. She matched all of the animals correctly and got four of them in the puzzle correctly.

The teacher in me wants to be completely uninvolved and let her do what she can how she can but the poor girl has a bit of my perfectionism and MUST have each animal in the spot properly.

Then there was time for child labor. Heh. My girl loves to copy whatever I'm doing and so I've been teaching her to dust. The second she sees the duster anywhere she sings, "dut, dut, dut" which is what I always tell her when she dusts and wants it. I believe that part of Tot School is teaching children life skills so here she is.

To work on fine motor skills I gave Makenzie some dry spaghetti and a parmesan cheese shaker (from the dollar store). I showed Makenzie that the spaghetti fits in the whole. She did not like that it was sticking out of the container when I showed her so she broke them off into tiny pieces and then put them in the jar. I love to see what she does with what she is given.

While I was cleaning out the refrigerator I had Makenzie take out the condiments on the bottom shelf and put them back. This kept her occupied for awhile. It's so cute to see her demeanor change when I give her a task. She becomes so serious and engrossed in her activity.

So I know that this week's post was a little weak but it's a start and I promise many more exciting things!

Farm Fresh to You

2011-06-20T14:11:00.000-07:00

As you saw in my last post, we signed up for a local CSA called Farm Fresh to You. This service, so far, is awesome! We are paying $31.50 for a box of organic, local produce to show up at our door every Friday. Each Friday I get to see the list of produce we will be receiving for the following Friday and can make changes to it as needed/wanted.

Although I haven't been able to really put it to the test, I am thinking that this is really going to help me save money on our grocery bill since I feel like a majority of our grocery bill comes from the high produce prices. We calculated how much this box would cost at the grocery store and it would cost about $30 BUT that's for your regular produce, not organic. So far everything we've eaten from our box is really good. I can tell the difference in the taste of the tomatoes and lettuce for sure. I'll keep you all updated every week as I get new boxes and try out new recipes with the produce we're receiving. I'm really excited about it!

If you are in the Southern California area and are interested in this service. I can give you a referral code that will give you $5 off your first box. Just leave me a comment with your email address and I'll send it to you. :)

This Week in Pictures

2011-06-17T10:29:00.000-07:00

(1) Kenzie at the ball pit My Gym (2) Dirk installed safety locks on the kitchen and bathroom cabinets
(3) Kenzie loved playing with my old purse and bracelets (4) Since Kenzie no longer has access to the cabinets I organized the cabinets and the fridge.
(5) Kenzie loves to dut (dust) (6) My first box of produce came from Farm Fresh to You. (more info about that on Monday!)

Competition

2011-06-15T12:41:00.000-07:00

I am not a competitive person. When I would play board games when I was younger I felt bad if I made a good move against my parents because I didn't want to hurt their feelings. I am not one to compare myself to my friends or to compare what we have versus what others have. In that sense I am content with who we are as a family, who I am and who Makenzie is. Trust me, I'm not tooting my own horn because I have many, many flaws. I'm not saying this is good or bad, it's just me. In fact competition, when used properly, can lead to very good things and can be a strength in character.

I have noticed that competition runs through many people's blood and it's so interesting to me. Parents will either be bummed that their kid isn't doing something that Makenzie is doing or will be so proud that their kid is doing something that Kenzie isn't doing. Either way, I'm not affected. I'm happy to see Makenzie right where she is, whether more or less skilled in an area.

As a teacher, I am so intrigued by the drastic differences between toddlers of similar age. While one may talk well, the other has mastered most gross motor skills. While one may be timid to try new things, the other is willing to do whatever you ask of them. In teaching, it is well known that most children's abilities will level out around 3rd grade. Of course there are some who will fall behind and others who will be "gifted" but for the most part, by the time a kid reaches third grade, they will be almost equal with their peers. This is why GATE programs don't start until after a child is in 3rd grade.

I suppose I put enough pressure on myself that if I did feel competitive towards others I would crumble from the pressure. And because I'm just thinking out loud and have no pictures to go with my thoughts, here's a picture Dirk took on his iPhone after church. I just love it because it shows her dainty but fun personality.

This Week in Pictures

2011-06-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

Top row: Meeting our very good friends' baby girl, Kenzie was in a funk all week, Kenzie learned to walk DOWN the stairs on her own
Bottom row: Self-feeding with yogurt, bubble bath, trying to sort through and organize the toys is difficult when Kenzie wants to take it all apart

It all started with an ossicone

2011-06-08T11:29:00.000-07:00

Do you know what an ossicone is? No? I didn't either but Makenzie does.

It all started when Makenzie was about 9 1/2 months old. You see she has the Melissa & Doug giraffe in her room which she has always loved. When she was about 9 1/2 months old she started saying, "wassat" (what's that) to pretty much everything she saw. Every morning she wakes up and wants to say hello to the giraffe. Before she could say eye, ear, nose, etc. She would point to a body part on the giraffe and say, "wassat" and I would name the part she was pointing to. Then one day she started pointing to the horns on the giraffe. I didn't know what they were called but I figured I better find out what they're called so I could answer her question. I headed over to the trusty internet and googled, "What are the horns on the giraffe called?" Answer: ossicones. It was at that moment that I knew that Makenzie was going to challenge me, she was going to be a curious soul and I was going to need to find ways to challenge her curious mind.

In comes Tot School. Tot School is a name that I heard used by my new favorite blogger Carisa of 1+1+1=1. Essentially it is just play with purpose. Providing activities for your child that will allow him/her to concentrate, explore and learn all while playing in an organized environment, or at least that's what it means for me.

It's going to take a little bit of time to get things running the way that they should (how I want them to) but I'm starting to incorporate some activities in our day and so far it's going great!

First off, we started with putting Q-tips in a honey bear (yes, she is in Christmas jammies, in June heh)

I handed her about 20 Q-tips which I placed in a square container and then handed her the bear. I modeled once how to use it and then let her try her hand at it. She took a little time to put the first one in but she did really well. Then she grabbed a large handful and tried to put them all in and realized she wasn't able to do that, she then tried putting 3 in at a time and eventually realized she was going to have to put them in one at a time. After she was done she came up to me and asked for more. It was so fun to watch her explore what she was doing and how she was going to do it.

Another activity that we did was transferring "balls" to ice cube trays. This works on one-to-one correspondence which is the basis for counting. I didn't take a picture of Makenzie doing this activity for some reason but I did get the end result.

I gave her 12 "balls" that I bought from CM school supply for 15 cents each. I put the balls in a small plastic container, handed her the ice cube tray and asked her to put the balls in. She tried to stack them but quickly learned that only one ball fit in each cube resulting in one-to-one correspondence.

Another activity that she loves is playing with my bracelets. I put them in an old small purse that I have. She carries the purse around, finds the perfect spot to sit down, takes out each bracelet, tries it on, examines it, then eventually lines them all up. Again, I need to be better about taking pictures. She is so quiet and focused during this time of play. Regardless of whether I can exactly pinpoint the skill that is being learned, she is learning to focus and concentrate and I can almost see her little brain making connections. I just absolutely love it. I'm really looking forward to getting more organized and getting more activities set up.

I'm going to be joining Carisa's Tot School posts by creating a weekly post of what we're doing and how I'm setting up our Tot School and then linking it up to her posts. If this sounds at all interesting to you I highly suggest that you check our her blog. I think that you will seriously enjoy all of her great ideas and the resources on how to set up Tot School and what it's all about. She has 3 children of various ages so you can get ideas for all ages. I went back and looked at older posts to get ideas for Makenzie's age. I hope you enjoy!

This Week in Pictures

2011-06-03T09:26:00.000-07:00

I decided to start doing this. I've seen it done on other blogs and I always think it's so interesting. I take a ton of pics with my iPhone but I never do anything with them so I thought what better way that to share them. So here's my week in pics (you'll be seeing a few of these things next week as I share more about them):

Oh Life

2011-05-23T22:56:00.000-07:00

So my hubby started this online journaling thing called OhLife. When he told me about it I wasn't interested in trying it. I'm an old fashion journal-er. I like to buy a pretty journal, get some fun pens and enjoy my time in front of my journal writing about whatever I want, whenever I want without being judged by anyone, except maybe my future self who will read it and laugh at the ridiculousness of the entry. Anyway, I used to journal like almost every day, that was until I got married and was in graduate school and working and then working and doing BTSA and being pregnant and then having a baby and now a toddler and...well you get the picture.

So I decided to try out OhLife and it only lasted a few days. I just don't feel connected to my computer screen like I do to my pen and paper. But then I got a genius idea, or so I tell myself it was. I decided to use OhLife to write letters or short notes to Makenzie. The beauty of OhLife is that it sends you an e-mail every evening reminding you of something you wrote awhile back, or yesterday and all you have to do is reply to the e-mail and it will post it in the OhLife journal for you. Also, you can attach pictures with your entry if you'd like. The awesome thing is that you can write as little or as much as you want. There's no pressure to fill out these amazing pages or write a bunch of info. You just write short simple and sweet things to remember the day. I don't write every day but I try to write frequently.

Here's an example of what today's post looks like on the actual site:

If you, like me, struggle to keep track of those things you want to remember, or if you find yourself thinking, "Man, I want to remember this moment forever." Then you should definitely check it out. I check my e-mail every evening so all I have to do is open the OhLife e-mail, hit respond type a few lines and I have forever saved that special memory.

If you're interested in signing up, head over to the OhLife site, do it now, you will be happy you did!

4 Years

2011-05-22T22:23:00.000-07:00

May 19th marked 11 years since Dirk and I boarded a plane headed for Australia. I was 16, he was 17 and we barely knew each other.

We went on this trip in May 2000 with our church youth group. Neither of us were interested in finding a relationship but by the end of the trip we had begun a good friendship.

Over the next few months we hung out with our group of friends and just got to know each other. In October of 2000 we became something more, although not labeling ourselves as boyfriend and girlfriend.

We went to homecoming together...

and Jr. Sr. Prom.

We graduated high school at the same time...

and college...

and then exactly 7 years after we left for Australia, on May 19, 2007, we were married...


Photo by D2 Photography Studio

I recently read a quote from a Facebook friend's cousin's wedding toast, it said, "May you look back on your wedding day as the day you loved each other the least." I can truly say that I loved Dirk much less that day than I do today. I was so full of love for him that day that I wouldn't have been able to imagine that I could love him more, but I do.

I have learned over these past 4 years that love is so much more than excitement and feelings. It's sacrifice. It's finding ways to enjoy each other among the mundane every day things. It's laughing together at the little things Makenzie does. It's looking forward to alone time together but instead falling asleep in each other's arms because we are so exhausted. It's listening when you feel like zoning out, smiling when you feel like being stoic and being empathetic even when you feel like crying yourself. Love is so much more than I could have described 4 years ago. I know I have just touched the surface but I have learned so much in these past four years. I am so lucky to be married to my best friend. It sounds so cliche but it's true. I'd rather spend time with him than with anyone else. He's the only person I feel 100% myself around. Love is what Dirk and I have and I am so thankful.

We spent Thrusday - Saturday in Santa Barbara. Makenzie spent her first nights away from us and did great! Here are just a few of the pictures from our trip. I was so nervous about going but I highly suggest that every couple take some time away. It was so refreshing!


Malibu, CA Photo taken by my talented hubby Dirk Dallas


Santa Barbara Sunset Photo taken by my talented hubby Dirk Dallas

Black Bean, Tomato and Avocado Quinoa

2011-05-12T10:41:00.000-07:00

Quinoa is our new favorite dinner side dish. I had read great things about it but just never cooked it. Dirk is pretty picky so I was worried when he came home and said, "What is that?" I hesitantly explained what it was, I was worried he'd write it off but instead it's his new favorite food.

Why should you try it? It's considered a "superfood." According to Men's Health it's the world's most nutritious grain. It's a complete protein and is also a good source of manganese, magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorus, along with other things. Plus it's yummy!

Here's the recipe for our favorite way to prepare it. The picture doesn't show avocado in the quinoa because we were having avocado on our chicken and didn't want to overdo it, but the avocado tastes amazing in this recipe! If you love quinoa I'd love to hear how you make it!

Black Bean, Tomato & Avocado Quinoa
adapted from this epicurious recipe

yield: 4 side dish servings

ingredients:
2 teaspoons grated lime zest
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup quinoa
1 (14- to 15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 medium tomato, diced
1 avocado, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
Wash quinoa in 3 changes of cold water in a bowl, draining in a sieve each time.

Cook quinoa in a medium pot of boiling salted water (1 tablespoon salt for 2 quarts water), uncovered, until almost tender, about 10 minutes.

While the quinoa is cooking, whisk together lime zest and juice, butter, oil, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4teaspoon pepper in a large bowl.

Drain in sieve, then set sieve in same pot with 1 inch of simmering water (water should not touch bottom of sieve).

Cover quinoa with a folded kitchen towel, then cover sieve with a lid (don't worry if lid doesn't fit tightly) and steam over medium heat until tender, fluffy, and dry, about 10 minutes.

Remove pot from heat and remove lid. Let stand, still covered with towel, 5 minutes.

Add quinoa to dressing and toss until dressing is absorbed, then stir in remaining ingredients and salt and pepper to taste.

Side note: you can prepare the quinoa according to package directions which is a little eaiser, however this method allows for the quinoa to dry up a little which allows for a better consistency.

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-09T03:00:00.000-07:00

I hope all of you mommies out there had a wonderful Mother's Day. I like to take the holidays to really reflect on life. I am so thankful for my mom and the sacrifices she made as a stay-at-home-mom. I am thankful for my hubby who cherishes me and lets me know that I am cherished, I could not be the mom I am without his hardwork and encouragement. I am thankful for my friends who are moms, for those of you I can call or e-mail to ask a question and those of you who are just there to be a good friend. I am also so thankful for my sweet girl, who has taught me more in this past year than I could have imagined, she brings so much joy to our lives, I can't even remember what life was like before we had her. Most of all, I am thankful to God for the blessings He has given me. I am SO blessed in SO many ways. Thank you to all of you who read this blog. You help support me, encourage me and put me in my place. I don't use the word love unless I really mean it and I really mean that I love everyone of you that I have mentioned.

Another one of my favorite things to do around the holidays or special events is to look at pictures from the same time in the past year.

Here's my sweet girl last year:

And here is a picture from today:

It's so crazy to see how much she's grown. What a blessing she is!

AHHHHH!

2011-05-04T17:06:00.000-07:00

Okay, so yeah, I've been pretty absent lately. I honestly have had major blogger's block, yes I just made that not-so-clever term up. I have been cooking up some pretty yummy things but I don't have the camera I'm comfortable using and hate our old point and shoot what's a good recipe if the picture looks gross? I've been working on the Purpose Project, but honestly I think it's this very thing that has me all unorganized. I felt like I was finally getting on track and things were getting in order and then stuff started happening, lots of stuff. Makenzie and Dirk got sick, then Makenzie got sick again, then our water heater was broken for 4 days, then our car had to go to the shop, it has just been chaos. I feel like every time I am about to fulfill what I feel God has given me as my purpose I, am thwarted. I know that this is normal but it's also so discouraging. I have a desire to keep this blog going with more than one post a week but I don't want to blog just to blog. I want it to be meaningful content and when I feel like that is lacking, then I don't blog. So, I guess that's where I'm at. I am not going to promise more frequent posts, although that is one of my goals on my Goal Setting sheet. I just thought I'd share where I'm at and where I'm TRYING to go. :)

Baby Number Two?

2011-04-25T03:00:00.000-07:00

I love writing titles that I know will first get an "Oh my gosh!" response. No, I'm not preggers and not even close to thinking about it. Now that Makenzie is over a year old the questions are starting, "So when are you guys gonna have another baby?"

I love being a mommy and I love Makenzie with all my heart but I am SO not ready for another baby, like REALLY not ready. I have a lot of friends that are pregnant with baby number two right now so maybe that's what's sparking the questions but I just can't imagine being pregnant again or having another baby. I don't know if it's because it's only been 6 months since I've fully, physically recovered from Makenzie's birth or if it's because I have such a strong desire to breastfeed the next baby but every time I think of it, it leaves an empty pit in my stomach. I guess all of the negative aspects of Makenzie's birth are still fresh enough that the thought of having another baby literally makes me anxious and almost makes me sick. I am also SO enjoying Makenzie and the fun stage that she's at that I'm not ready to be busy with another baby yet.

I know that God will prepare me and put the desire in both mine and Dirk's hearts when the time is right but I'm not thinking that this will be for at least another year, if not more. So, if you were wondering when there will be a baby number 2 for the Dallas family, you can now know that it won't be for quite some time. I just had to get that off my chest...heh.

And just because all posts are more fun with a picture, here's a picture of Kenzie with her first ponytail. After about 10 minutes it's a hot mess but it looks so cute while it lasts.

Tie-Dyed Eggs...My Attempt

2011-04-21T09:39:00.000-07:00

I tie-dyed my eggs yesterday. The perfectionist in me wishes they turned out better but they still look pretty cool.

I bought my ties at the Goodwill for $1.99. I think that was a little pricey because I read about people getting theirs for 50 cents but I guess $1.99 isn't so bad for silk ties. These are the ties I bought:

I figured the Mickey Mouse tie wouldn't work but I wanted to try it anyway.

Here's what I got:

This one came out the best. The colors transferred beautifully. The bright bold ties turn out the best. The key is to really get them flat and tight on the surface, which is really difficult!

This one was the worst. The pastels just didn't transfer well at all and the silk was really thick so it was difficult to get a tight wrap around it.

Mickey actually turned out better than I thought he would. Obviously still didn't turn out great but you can see a distorted Mickey on the egg. If I get a chance to try it again, I'm going to try to do the Pluto, he's more colorful and shorter so I'm hoping he'll work out well.

This one is my favorite. The bottom is the only part that turned out well but the colors transferred so beautifully. It's so bright and vibrant!

If you want to try this here's the link to Our Best Bites, which I shared the other day.

Here are a few tips:

Choose ties that feel more lightweight, the heavy silk is difficult to get a good, tight wrap around the egg
Choose bold colored ties
The tighter the wrap and the less the "wrinkles" the better transfer you'll get
I used some of Kenzie's old burp rags (the stained ones that I won't use again) to wrap around the egg. You can use any light-colored fabric that you don't need anymore

Silk Dyed Eggs

2011-04-15T11:32:00.000-07:00

Photo taken from ourbestbites.com

I just saw this post on Our Best Bites and had to share! This looks so easy! I'm going to head to the thrift store today to see if I can pick up some silk ties!

Easter with a Toddler

2011-04-13T23:20:00.000-07:00

Last Easter, Makenzie was only 2 months old so we couldn't do much with her. I wanted to color eggs but we just didn't get to it.


Makenzie - Easter 2010

I am so excited to continue some family traditions with her this year. My mom and dad always hid our Easter baskets and played the hot and cold game. I didn't like it because I never liked all the attention on me but my brothers loved it. I am pretty sure that Makenzie would love something like that as well.

So how do you celebrate Easter with a toddler? I found a couple things on some of the blogs I follow and thought I'd share.

I LOVE the idea of a streamer egg hunt.

Photo taken from a subtle revelry

Victoria, over at a subtle revelry created this idea and I think it's absolutely genius! You tape streamers to the eggs and stretch the streamer throughout the house. The kids can follow the streamer to find the egg. You could make this complex for older kids but I'm thinking for a toddler you could just leave a long tail on the egg and let them either follow it or pull the egg to themselves. I'm so excited to try this with Kenzie.

When it comes to dyeing eggs, I, of course, want it to be natural. Better Homes and Gardens has some "recipes" for how to dye your eggs all naturally.

Photo from BHG

Healthy Home

2011-04-13T03:00:00.000-07:00

If you have been following my blog for awhile you know that I often struggle to choose between organic and/or all natural products or the typical "regular" products. I still struggle every day. My cost-conscious reasonable self says that I grew up with absolutely NOTHING organic (did "organic" even exist in the 80s?) and I'm just fine. But then I watch things like the video below and I realize that our lives are so different today than they were "back then." I don't know how much different but different nonetheless.

I do my best to buy organic whenever I can and the rest I leave to the Lord. I pray for our health and Makenzie's health every day and I believe that as long as I'm doing what I can then the Lord will take care of the rest. Anyway, I thought this movie was intriguing so I thought I'd share...

A Wake-Up Story from Healthy Child Healthy World on Vimeo.

What do you think about organic products?

Makenzie's Ultimate Baby Playdate

2011-04-05T03:00:00.000-07:00

Whew, it's been almost a month since Makenzie's party but I'm finally here to share it with you! When I started planning for her party, everything I read said that babies really don't care about first birthday parties. That sounded like a challenge to me. I decided that Makenzie's first birthday WOULD in fact be all about her.

As I thought of the usual and even some unusual themes, nothing struck me. I decided to come up with my own theme, we were going to do an Ultimate Baby Playdate. Makenzie loves playdates and she loves her friends so why not have all of her baby friends over for a souped up playdate?
I started sketching and brainstorming and making lists. After months and months of planning, it all came together. There were some major bumps in the road on the day of the party and things didn't get done as well as I had wanted them to but the party was awesome and the best part was that Makenzie had a blast!

The invite designed by my oh-so-talented hubby. Having an Ultimate Baby Playdate meant that I got to keep the guest list to a minimum. A majority of the guests we invited were Makenzie's baby friends. I added a fun touch and addressed each invite to her friend.

My mom made Makenzie a turquoise tutu, a cupcake onesie and her matching flower headband and she bought her pink glitter TOMS.

I decided to take all of the furniture out of our living room and dining room and make it party central. We ended up leaving the couch but everything else went in the garage. I put away the stuffed toys and any of her toys that would be difficult to sanitize. I brought out her ball pit and put the toys in the middle of the room. The babies were free to roam around and play at their leisure without mom or dad having to stress about them.

Our large window seat in the living room was used for presents. I downloaded a banner from the blog eighteen25 and used Photoshop to change the colors to match the party. We bought two mylar butterfly balloons and had them on each side.

Behind the couch was a small table with Makenzie's Shutterfly books, a pink photo box, pens and blank index cards. Everyone loved looking through Makenzie's books. On the blank index cards we asked people to write a special message to Makenzie. When they were done they placed the cards in the pink box, which became Makenzie's first birthday box.

The main focal point of the party was the dessert/snack table. This was the first thing you saw when you walked in the door. We had a lot of fun putting it together. There was an "adult" food table elsewhere but we kept the baby food on this table. We had PB&J finger sammies, string cheese, whole wheat goldfish crackers and a sippy cup with a Happy Tot Organic Fruit Pouch for each baby. We used colored streamers for the backdrop.

I decorated my Wilton cupcake stand with hot pink satin ribbon and turquoise rick rack. I made chocolate cupcakes with turquoise frosting and put pink "Happy 1st Birthday" candles in the top cupcakes.

Dirk left to get balloons and on his way home the tire and axel on our Civic decided to just fall off. Praise the Lord he was right outside the gate to our Community and was completely uninjured but he did have to wait for a tow truck to come. Because of this my mom and I were scrambling around. Unfortunately I didn't get to complete all of the sweets I wanted on the table and I didn't get to frost Makenzie's smash cake. It all worked out fine and she just smashed a cupcake. I decorated her highchair with tulle and satin ribbon and made her hat (that she wore for 2 seconds).

Overall, the party was tons of fun. In a perfect world things would have been a little different but remember this was all about Makenzie and she had a great time! We are so thankful for our sweet girl and all of our friends and family who came. We love you all!

Quick Clean Ups

2011-04-04T05:00:00.000-07:00

I saw this printable on the Idea Room last week. I can guarantee you will be tired of me talking about Emilie Barnes by the time I'm done with all of this Purpose Project stuff but the Lord is really using her book to reshape me so I will probably be bringing her up a lot. One of the things she suggests is to make a list of short tasks you can do in even 5 or 10 minutes. If you or a family member are waiting for a phone call or waiting for company, etc. you can go to your list of quick tasks and choose something to do so that you are not wasting your time. This list is all clean-ups and it starts at 15 minute intervals but it's a good start. I'm thinking of coming up with my own version for smaller time segments and adding more than cleaning tasks. If/when I get around to that I'll share it. :)

Picture from theidearoom.net

Purpose Project: Setting Goals

2011-03-29T10:59:00.000-07:00

Okay so here's my first step in what I'm calling the "Purpose Project." The main book that I've been reading is Emilie Barnes' "More Hours in My Day." What I LOVE about this book is that it is based on scripture. This isn't a book about how to have a spotless home, it's a book about how to run your home in such a way that it is glorifying to God and is organized.

When I was teaching I was constantly setting goals and objectives. Plans for my kids, plans for me, plans for everything! When I was blessed with the opportunity to stay at home I did not carry this with me. I mean staying at home is easy right? You wake up when the baby wakes up, feed her, take care of her, there's nothing to it. WRONG! Being a stay-at-home mom is by far the most challenging thing I've ever done. 4 years of college, a year of graduate school and dealing with a room full of 37 fifth graders could never compare to the struggles I've faced while being a stay-at-home mom.

Emilie Barnes encourages every household to set goals. As a stay-at-home mom I found myself often doing the exact same thing over and over and feeling like it was all pointless. The kitchen will just be messy again, Makenzie will just soil her clothes so I'll have to change her again, the laundry will just get worn so why fold it, etc. When I wrote down my purpose of life, everything started to come into perspective and I started to realyze WHY I was doing what I was doing. I haven't stopped doing any of those things but I now have purpose. Some may argue that my purpose in everything is to do it unto the Lord and while that is true, I still believe that we need more. We need to have a drive, how is folding my laundry bringing glory to God? Well it's allowing order in my home which creates peace and it allows my husband to have a more peaceful morning as he finds every piece of clothing where it belongs. It's all about HOW we are glorifying God.

Setting goals is no good if you don't write them down, so I created a document.
Goal Setting

Now this is more of a brainstorming sheet. Later I will share another document that lets you set the goal with a deadline, because without a deadline goals do not get accomplished. At the top you see that you are to write your purpose of life. This is about what you want to accomplish in life. It doesn't need to have a time frame or specific, what do you want to accomplish?

The next boxes are goal setting boxes. Again these are just brainstorming ideas. You can write down 2 or 3 (don't do any more than that) things that you would like to accomplish this year. The best way to do this is to fill out your own sheet and have your hubby fill out his own, then come together to discuss them. The boxes are filled with subject areas that I personally want to set goals for. You could make the boxes any you want. You can add physical goals, mental goals, social goals, etc. Dirk and I haven't come together to discuss our goals yet but I'm really excited to see how this works for us. Already I have a renewed sense of purpose. I feel rejuvenated in my spiritual life and excited to serve the Lord by serving my family.

Remember Me?

2011-03-27T23:09:00.000-07:00

So recuperation from the party turned into some deep introspection, which is why I've been gone for awhile. I don't have a lot to share about this right now, except that I began to realize that how I am running my household, and my life for that matter, is just not working. I feel like I'm constantly spinning my wheels and getting nowhere. I've been doing a lot of reading, a ton of praying and some thinking. I am on my way to getting my life and house in order. There are a lot of changes happening and I'm excited to share them with you as I test them out. I know that this is going to be a trial and error process but I am confident that in the end I will find the perfect plan for our family. As I go through this process I will be sharing documents that I make, things that I'm trying and whether or not they're working.

I will leave you with a verse that has really stuck with me as I'm going through this process. Proverbs 24:3-4 "Through wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches." (NKJ)

Makenzie is ONE!

2011-03-13T23:46:00.000-07:00

I know I promised some posts last week but I needed to recoup after a long week. But I am back in full swing. On February 26th Makenzie turned a year old. I am still in a reflective mood. Remembering all the little details of this time last year.

This sweet baby girl has completely changed my world. I'm not just talking about the lack of sleep, the constant mess in my house or the busyness that it all entails. I have become a different person. I'm sure that having a boy would change me as well but having a girl has led me to constant introspection. I see my shortcomings so much more vividly and try to figure out how to overcome them for Makenzie's sake. As I have mentioned so many times on here, I want her to grow up in the ways of the Lord, finding her confidence in Him. I don't want her to be affected by our self-seeking culture. I have read both Christian and secular books regarding the subject. I have prayed and spent hours thinking of how to raise this sweet girl so that she will have confidence in the Lord. I know that when it all comes down to it, it's all the Lords hands and as long as Dirk and I are seeking the Lord and asking Him to guide our ways, we will raise her to be the woman that God wants her to be.

This past year has had some very difficult, very emotional times but it has been such a great year. Dirk and I have become closer and have reaffirmed that we can get through all sorts of trials. Makenzie has completely brightened up our world and continues to bring us SO much joy. She is so much fun!

Here's a photo/video montage that I made of her first year, it's a little long (6 1/2 minutes) but I just couldn't cut it down. Hope you enjoy!

Kenzie's First Year-1 from The Dallas' on Vimeo.

Partay!

2011-03-03T15:04:00.001-08:00

I apologize for my absence this past week. I have a lot in the works. My sweet Makenzie turned one last Saturday!!! I cannot believe it! I have a post about that but right now I'm working on getting everything together for her "Ultimate Baby Playdate" this Saturday. I have a lot of fun things to share but ya'll are gonna have to wait until next week. See you then!!!

Daddy's Girl

2011-02-25T06:13:00.000-08:00

My brother Brad put these pics together. Makenzie is a Daddy's girl in every way.

Cheesy Broccoli Pasta for Little Ones

2011-02-24T08:50:00.000-08:00

You know I'm always trying to find new EASY ways to feed Makenzie. Lunch is probably the most difficult meal of the day. Breakfast is always yogurt, some kind of whole grain and a fruit. Dinner is usually what we're eating or some variation of that. I have discovered one of the greatest conveniences is frozen veggies. They are frozen at their peak so they can actually be more nutritious than fresh veggies. I've also discovered that Makenzie will eat almost anything that has cheese on it. So here's a super easy lunch or dinner idea.

Cheesy Broccoli Pasta

Ingredients:

A handful of macaroni or other pasta that's easy for your little one to eat (I use Pasta Barilla Plus, this pasta is high in protein and nutrients so it's, in my opinion, the best choice for pasta)

Sharp Cheddar (or other cheddar you have on hand)

Frozen Chopped Broccoli

Directions:
Boil about 1 1/2 - 2 cups of water in a small pot.

Place a handful of macaroni in the water, boil for 7 minutes or according to the directions on your pasta box.

While the pasta boils place about 1/8 cup (I just eyeball it) chopped broccoli in a microwave safe glass bowl. Add about a tablespoon of water, cover and microwave for 30 - 60 seconds. When it is cooked through, drain the water off of the broccoli.

When pasta is done boiling, DO NOT DRAIN! Use a spoon to take the pasta out of the water. Drain the water off the pasta using your spoon and place in little one's bowl. You won't be able to drain it all off, you want some water to remain in the bowl.

Mix the broccoli and pasta together. Finely grate the cheddar, if you don't do it finely it won't melt properly. I start with a small mound and mix it. Keep adding cheese until it's cheesy and makes a "sauce." Believe it or not, the cold cheese will help cool the pasta down and by the time you mix it all together it should be at the perfect temp for your little one (of course still check it first).

Serve it to your little one and watch him/her devour it!

Big Girl

2011-02-21T09:27:00.000-08:00

My brother Brad, myself and Makenzie after church

Before I had Makenzie I had no idea how attached I'd get to her. If you would have asked me about leaving her with a babysitter I wouldn't have had a problem with the idea. Then she was born and the thought of leaving her would make me anxious. I have only left her with my parents. When I go to drop her off she waves at me bye-bye and gets her play on with her Grammy and Poppy and uncles, there is no shortage of attention for this baby girl.

Dirk and I decided the last time that we were at church that it is time to put her in child care at church. We couldn't pay attention and she would get frustrated, it was just becoming quite the ordeal. The week leading up to putting her in I was SO anxious. I never thought I'd be that parent but I just couldn't stop thinking of the germs she'd be putting in her mouth and what if another kid bit her or hit her or??? It was absolutely ridiculous because we all know that's what childhood is about BUT as a mommy I was just having such an issue with it.

Well we did it yesterday. The worker quickly took her from us and showed her the bubbles and she was fine. Not a whimper or a look back. We watched her from the window for a bit and then had my brother check on her midway through the service. He said she was doing great and was just playing toys. We came to pick her up and she was sitting in the middle of the room playing and having a good time. I am SO thankful that she did well and that we can now enjoy the church service and really pay attention. Just another milestone in our baby girl's life.

Hasselback Potatoes

2011-02-18T08:51:00.000-08:00

I LOVE potatoes! I've never tried a potato I didn't like. When I saw the picture of the Hasselback Potatoes on pinterest I knew I had to try them. The recipe comes from Chicho's Kitchen.

Ingredients
4 medium potatoes, scrubbed (leave skin on)
4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
3 tbsp of olive oil
salt
pinch of smoked paprika
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
chopped chives for garnish

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425˚F (220ºC).
Slice each potato crosswise at 1/8-inch intervals, cutting to within 1/4 inch of the bottom.

Be careful not to slice all the way through (this is the most difficult part, it seems like it'd be easy but it was difficult for me). The potato will fan out a bit as it bakes.
Combine olive oil, garlic, salt, smoked paprika and parmesan cheese in a small bowl.

Lay the potatoes on a baking sheet. Carefully insert pinches of this mixture in between the slits of the potatoes. Rub the outsides of the potatoes with residual oil.

Bake for about 40-45 minutes. The inside should be cooked through and the outside of the potato should be a bit crispy.

Garnish with additional parmesan and chives and Enjoy!

2011-02-15T05:00:00.000-08:00

You may have noticed on my side bar that I have a "follow my pins on Pinterest" button. If you haven't heard of Pinterest you have to check it out. It's definitely not for everyone but if you, like me, always have some sort of inspiration folder on your desktop or are sending yourself e-mails of things you love, then you have to join. Essentially you put a "Pin It" button in your menu bar and whenever you find something you want to remember you click the button and the image and it posts to whichever board you've created. The other awesome thing about this is that you can follow others and find some awesome recipes, pretty things, great photography, and fun DIYs.

Right now the site is by invite only. If you think you're interested in having a Pinterest, leave a comment and I'll send you an invite. I can only invite 6 people so it will be given to the first 6 people. I hope you'll love it as much as I do!

P.S. If you aren't able to access my blog right now, I apologize. We're working on some kinks. It should still show up in an RSS feed though. :)

New Look, Same Ole' Me

2011-02-13T23:19:00.000-08:00

Things are lookin' a bit different over here, huh? (If you're reading this from an RSS feed you have to come check out the new look on the blog) This has been a long time coming. I had started getting things together but my very finite knowledge of CSS was causing the process to be LONG. Of course I ask Dirk for some help and he busts it out in a few hours. He's a genius I tell ya! We still have a few tweaks that need to be done but we're almost there.

So for starters, I changed the name of the blog. I just didn't feel that "I Do...Now What" fit my blog anymore. I started this blog way back in 2007, mostly in my excitement to share life as a newlywed. It has greatly morphed and I have become a more seasoned blogger (although I still have tons to learn). Of course now with Makenzie in the picture my life is different so the content is somewhat different. I feel like "Simply Alicia" really sums up my blog. This is me and my life and I am so grateful that you have decided to join me as I share the things that I learn on my journey.

I did change my URL to www.simplyalicia.com but the good news is that 2have2hold.blogspot.com will still work so if you don't feel like changing your reader or your link, you don't have to.

Overall, the site is going to remain the same. The same content, same me, just a different look. I hope you enjoy this revamp and continue to follow along with me.

Valentine's Day Project

2011-02-11T09:52:00.000-08:00

I saw this project posted Meet the Dubiens and I HAD to try it. It was A LOT more difficult than I thought it would be with a baby but we made it work. It's not as "perfect" as it would be if you have older kiddos but I know that Dirk will still love it. He's not going to see it until tonight (Friday night) so don't say anything to him if you see him today. :)

Here's what you'll need:
White cardstock or paper
red paint
paintbrush
fine point sharpie or felt tip pin
colored paper for the mat (optional)
frame (optional)

Directions:
1. Paint one hand
2. Stamp the hand on your paper facing downwards at a diagonal
3. Paint the opposite palm
4. Stamp the hand on your paper facing downwards at the opposite diagonal
5. Use your black marker to write a special note. If it doesn't fit all the way around use x's and os' to make up the rest of the room.
6. OPTIONAL: Cut the paper you're using for a mat so that it fits in your frame (just use the glass or paper insert that comes with the frame. Cut out the heart and glue it on the mat. Place in the frame.

note: If you are doing this with a small child you will want to use a mat because the paint doesn't seem to stay in one place on the paper, resulting in a messy white paper.

Sweet Story

2011-02-09T11:59:00.000-08:00

Kristian Anderson is an Australian TV editor and his wife was a high school teacher who resigned when she became a mommy. Kristian was diagnosed with liver and bowel cancer. His doctor told him he needed to stop working so his wife, Rachel, went back to work as a high school teacher. Kristian made a video for Rachel's birthday, to thank her for all she has done for him and their family.

I saw the video a few weeks ago on Oprah but thought I'd save it until we got closer to Valentine's Day. It's seriously so sweet. The beginning is an introduction from the Prime Minister of New Zealand and Hugh Jackman also makes a cameo.

Rachel's Birthday Letter - Hi-res from Kristian Anderson on Vimeo.

Exploration Box

2011-02-08T09:57:00.000-08:00

As Makenzie gets older we're really getting into a good routine. In the morning she has a good 20-30 minutes of free play but I struggle to keep her occupied in the afternoons. I've been thinking and thinking about what I could do to help us pass the time, as well as help her little brain develop. It seems like the only thing that keeps her attention is taking things out of cupboards and drawers and exploring them. I decided to modify her favorite (messy) activity and make an exploration box.

This kept Makenzie busy for at least 25 minutes which was a great feat for us.

Essentially all you need to do is go through your garage, cupboards, drawers, pantry, etc. and find items that you think will intrigue your baby (and of course is safe for them to play with). I tried to find things that intrigue all of the senses but I'm still working on it.

So here's what's in this week's box.
White Nonpareils (sound)
a square of fine sandpaper (touch)
ribbon (fine motor skills)
2 candy canes (exploration)
gum wrapper (she loves shiny things)
2 black rocks (touch, sound & exploration)
a strip of blue painters tape, made into a loop, sticky side out (touch)
paintbrush (exploration, touch)
empty MAC eyeshadow box (exploration)
formula scooper (exploration, sound)
contact case (exploration)
2 different colored hair rubberbands

To add a sense of smell I need to buy a cheapo salt shaker and put "smelly" things in it such as a cut up lemon or coffee beans. This is such a great activity for getting your baby to explore his/her world and to learn about different shapes, textures, sounds, etc.

Makenzie's favorite items were the two rocks, which she played with for at least 15 minutes and the nonpareils. She explored everything for at least a second or two but most things for longer. The key to this is to frequently switch up the items in the box and you MUST supervise them while they are playing. This isn't something that you can do and then leave them to play because although the items aren't harmful they could be if swallowed, etc. This has given me some sanity and I hope it will give you some as well :)