Rainbow in a Jar-Salt Art

I have never met a kid that doesn't like to do sand art and of course my girls are no exception. Today we made rainbow sand art only the "sand" is actually salt that we colored with some food coloring.

They layered the colored salt in rainbow order,

and because it's been rumored that there is gold at the end of every rainbow, we added a layer of gold glitter.

 

They turned out great!

My Weekend-Unplugged

For the first time in as long as I can remember, I took a break from my online world, *gasp* and I actually survived! Aside from answering a few emails on Saturday, I stayed away from the computer. I really just wanted to take the whole weekend to focus on "real life", no posting crafts or everyday moments, just chilling out with my family. Ahhhh, the perfect weekend. It was nice and definitely something I will be doing more often! 

How did you spend your weekend?

I Think I'm In Love

My new washer and dryer have arrived! Now I think we really need to get this laundry room finished to match my shiny new appliances!

Sick Again

Stella has another cold. On top of that, she has {finally} gotten her first tooth. She had been working on that tooth for weeks! Poor baby has not been a happy camper.

Here is where you can find her, snuggled up close to momma all the time.

Torn Paper Shamrock

Every time we do a craft involving construction paper, I save the scraps to use later. This is one of those projects that uses up some of our scraps.

1. Tear some green construction paper into small pieces. Madelyn always has fun tearing paper!

2. While she was tearing up the scraps, I cut a shamrock out of an old cereal box.

 

3. Spread some glue on the shamrock.

 

4. Glue the scraps all over it.

You have an easy peasy shamrock. :)

Felicia Was Here

Didn't Your Mother Tell You Not To Play With Your Food?

Not this Momma! I say go ahead, eat, play, and learn!

Less Is More

 

Felicia has not quite figured that out yet.

A Fun Day!

Today we took the girls to the mall for the Children's Fair. It was a fun day full of activities just for little kids.

They made newspaper hats,

got their faces painted,

worked their way through an obstacle course and lots more!

I'm so glad they had it today, because the weather has turned cold again and was quite blustery, so inside was the best place to be.

In other news, little Miss Stella has started pulling herself up! 

Sixteen Years Ago Today...

...we welcomed into the world our second son, Brandon Patrick Adams.

He's grown so much over the last 16 years. 

It must have been all of those good meals I've made him.

 Well, technically he didn't really eat that meal, but there was this one...

um, I don't know if he actually got any of that one in his mouth, but whatever. Somehow, he has grown old enough to get his learners permit and actually drive...a car...Lord help us! He has had a little experience with wheels.

I guess I shouldn't worry too much.As long as his driving doesn't turn out like this:

Happy Birthday Brandon!

Let's Ride

It was another beautiful day again and Aaron has been itching to get out. He dug his bike out of its winter resting place, dusted it off, and gave the tires a little air. He was ready to ride!

Up and down the street he went a few times before I found him resting at the bottom of the steps.

At least he got his chance to take a little spin, the cold weather is returning now leaving us wanting more. More sun, more warmth, and more bike rides.

Stolen Images

Yesterday while searching for something on Google, I happened to notice a photo that I had taken for a tutorial I had done on my old blog Just For Fun. Although it's not uncommon to come across my own images, they usually are linked to my blog. This image was not. I clicked through to the site where the "author" had posted her own tutorial, using my photo!. I was angry! I immediately emailed both the "author" of the post and also the owner of the site asking them to remove my image because they had not asked my permission to use it or linked to me in any way. This was the response I received from the "author"

"So sorry about the picture. It has been or shortly will be removed. I truly never meant to steal anything.

Back in those days I used to either take my own photos for articles or if I was low on time, do a quick google image search to find something similar. I guess I thought that anything that popped up that wasn't copyrighted was up for grabs but now we have an editor who purchases stock photos to post for us so it will not happen again to you or anyone else.

Thanks for bringing this to my attention and please accept my sincere apologies"

The image has since been removed and I did accept her apology, however, it still bothers me that people think they can just grab any image they find on Google images. I guess I just assumed that everyone works with the same "code of ethics" that I do. If you didn't take the photo yourself or buy it, then it belongs to someone else. I found it very deceiving on her part to try to pass my work off on her readers. 

So, I have now started to watermark all of my photos. Yes, it does take a little bit more time, but now I feel that it is necessary. Sadly, I guess some people see nothing wrong with helping themselves to others work. :(

Best Friends

A Golden Glow

Stella hasn't been feeling well the last few days. She has another nasty cold, that she has now shared with the rest of us. Thank you Stella! But, fortunately, the weather has been quite nice and the sun is shining brightly. A few minutes out in the fresh air and this little one was feeling much better!

How's the weather where you live?

Nightly Reading

Nightly reading with Felicia is one of my favorite times of the day. She is really growing as a reader and has moved past the "See Jane Run" stage of reading. For that, I am grateful. She's become more fluent and less robotic. She loves books, just like her Momma! So I say, " Read on, Felicia!"

Sorting Through the Loot

I always loved Valentine's Day when I was a little girl. When I picked Felicia up at school, she came out with a big bag of goodies and was grinning from ear to ear. She loves it too! She made sure to share her goodies with all of us and even saved me some Fun Dip! I love that sugary junk!

So, how was your Valentine's Day?

Lovin' From The Oven-Easy Homemade Pretzels

This is a super easy recipe for soft pretzels that I've made many times with my kids. They love making different shapes and even letters. Today, we made some Valentine's Day shaped pretzels! Hearts, X's, and O's, and even some "tied knots"! They turned out great and were tasty too!

{You will need}

1 packet of yeast

1 1/2 cups warm water

1 tablespoon sugar

4 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 beaten egg
Course salt to sprinkle on top (if desired) 

{Here's how to make pretzels}

Mix the water and yeast together in a bowl until the yeast is completely dissolved. Add salt, sugar, and flour. Mix and knead until the dough is smooth. Roll and shape the dough into any shape you desire. 

Place pretzels on a greased cookie sheet and brush them with the beaten egg. Sprinkle lightly with  course salt.

Bake in a 425 degree oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy!

Why Did I Buy a Crib?

Remember how I mentioned Mady pushing Stella around in the laundry basket? It seems to be her new favorite place to be!  She's been hanging on to the side of it any chance she can so, Madelyn made it nice and cozy for her and put her in. She got comfy and was almost asleep when I got my camera out. Of course then she perked up to give me one of her "smirks" Silly girl!

Bouncing Barbies and a Baby in a Basket

It really has been a struggle finding things to entertain the kids during these frigid days we have been having lately. This winter has been brutal! We've been trapped indoors for far too long.

I'm constantly finding scenes like this that make me shake my head and say, "huh?"

 Apparently, the Barbies' needed some soothing and the bouncy seat was the perfect place for that. 

Tonight, Madelyn spent about 20 minutes pushing Stella around in her laundry basket "car". Driving Miss Daisey so to speak. Not a peep from Stella, she just sat back and enjoyed the ride.

 I, for one, am ready to venture outdoors for a change. The good news, I saw the weather report this morning and temps are starting to rise. I even saw a 50 degree day in the forecast! 

And my chant continues....We are one day closer to spring!

Playing With Her Shadow

Felicia and Mady's Favorite Doll

The Tree of Love

Did you know that love grows on trees? Well it does here!

{Here's how to make a Love Tree of your own!}
1. Paint your child's arm with brown paint and print it on a piece of construction paper.

2. Using a heart shaped sponge, print some "leaves" with green paint.

3. Using your thumb dipped in red paint, create some hearts for your Love Tree.

Now, you have a Tree of Love!