Random Thoughts This Morning

This morning I have found myself pondering lots of important things like....

1.  If you give a kid a mud puddle he/she will jump in it until the puddle is all splashed out and empty.

2.  Bees are buzzzzzzzzy all of the time.  Rain or shine they are at work!  Fascinating.

3.  I used to read 2 or 3 books a week.  I am down to 2 or 3 pages a night before the ol' eyelids slam shut....parenting tires a girl out!

4.  Strawberries, sour cream, and brown sugar are one of the most incredible taste sensations out there.

5.  I ordered caterpillars for our butterfly kit and the day they were received my daughter's caterpillar, ,caught in our very own backyard, turned itself into a chrysalis....a bit ironic I thought!

6.  I am ridiculously excited about the new series Girl Meets World.  It premiered last night and my daughter and I have a popcorn/ice cream date scheduled tonight to watch it.  Last summer we watched Boy Meets World and loved it.

7.  My daughter has caught the same slug 3 different times....3 different times it has escaped and then been found.  Everytime the slug is rediscovered I imagine it is screaming "Noooooooo" as it is being put back into it's habitat.  Don't feel too sorry for Spot the slug though.....it has a habitat set up that I envy!

8.  This morning I am having left over chile rellenos for breakfast.  I LOVE LEFTOVERS for breakfast!

9.  I am channeling Annie and singing "The sun will come out tomorrow......"  Really.....the sun will come out tomorrow....right?  I am feeling a little soggy!

10.  A child's project involving flour in cake pans requires intense supervision.  Otherwise clouds of said flour will erupt all over the house and footprints comprised of flour will be found on the couch.  Ask me how I know this! :)

And that is it. I am thunk out for the day....Happy Saturday everyone!

Chicken In The Freezer

We decided to raise hens for eggs three years ago and I haven't regretted the decision for a second.  We loved our girls and they were amazing egg layers.  Our hens were getting older and their egg production was starting to decline so this year we decided to get new chicks.  We live in a small town on a large lot but how many chickens we are allowed to keep is ordained by the city. We can only have so many chickens.  For this reason we decided to put our older hens in the freezer as crock pet hens, and start off fresh with our new chicks.

Our older hens were treated like the little rulers of the roost that they were.  Treats in the form of garden weeds and kitchen scraps were hand delivered every day.  They had lots of room to run, scratch, dig, and play.  They were given excellent chicken food and their water was always kept fresh and plentiful.  Our girls had great lives, but at the end of the day they were raised for their eggs and meat.  I am sad and already miss the ladies (though the new chicks keep us hopping) but AM happy that I know exactly how well they were treated and what went into their bodies.  I know the meat provided by one of our chickens will be healthy and ethical.  As I don't plan to give up eating chicken, I am glad that some of the chicken we consume came directly from our little backyard "farm".

The Birth Of A Chicken Coop...... Alternatively Titled....... My Husband Rocks! I Think I'll Keep Him.

Before

Helping Dad

Last week was a busy one for our family.  We put hens in the freezer (our first time butchering chickens) and built a chicken coop.....or I should say my husband......with help from our son......built a chicken coop.  A lot of thought went into this coop.  We purchased a chicken coop kit a few years ago and it worked great, but this year we purchased more chicks so we need a bigger coop.  Things like laying boxes, easy cleaning accessibility, roosts, and where to put the food and water were all things that needed to be considered.  My husband drew up a blue print and he and my son went to work.  I love how it turned out!  It is a two story coop with SO much room for our new girls.  Cleaning and gathering eggs is easy and changing the food and water is a breeze.  Thanks hon!

Interior Shot

Done!

Paint Chip Chore Charts

5 people living in a 1000 sq foot home means being vigilant chore wise or our home will be overtaken by unopened mail, toys, and crafts. I do not claim to be a housekeeping saint by any means, but I do like a relatively clean and clutter free house (not including my to do boxes....those are overflowing and very cluttery!  They don't count , do they?)  My kids are ages 9, 5, and 4.  They are old enough to do chores and honestly they help me out a LOT.

I devised a paint chip chore chart system that seems to work very well for our  kids.  They have learned (or are learning) their chores and have gotten quite good at them.  Needless to say this takes a little off of my plate which I am thankful for.  Here is how it works:  each child gets a paint chip made up of several shades of their favorite color.  In each shade of the paint chip I write one or two chores until the paint chip is filled up.  My oldest daughter, at age 9,  has the most chores and my 4 and 5 year olds have less.  I adjust periodically and switch chores around between the kids. There are also daily things like picking up toys and putting dirty clothes in the hamper that are expected, but aren't included on the charts.   My goal is that everyone knows how to do all of the chores necessary to run a home.  I want to send my kids out into the world knowing how to cook, do dishes, run a washing machine, etc.  This chore system works well for us because it is visual, uncomplicated,  and easy to change as necessary.

I think chores are important because it teaches kids how a household is run.  It gives the kids a sense of confidence when they have mastered a chore, and honestly having some of the daily load taken off of my and my husband's shoulders is much appreciated.  We stress that our home is a place that takes a team to take care of it.  Each chore that the kids do is important and completing that chore successfully means a lot to the household running smoothly.  Kids enjoy being an important cog in the wheel of household maintenance.....even if they don't feel it or admit it at the time.  They may grumble at times, but it is worth it to follow through and keep the chore chain gang going.....even if it is sometimes easier to do everything myself!  Kids will appreciate it sooner rather than later.

Taming The Laundry Monster For Good

Laundry is not my favorite task....specifically folding laundry is not my favorite thing to do.  It is usually last on my to do list and I have been known to have 4 loads at a time waiting to be folded. However, now that I have 5 people in my family and my husband is no longer doing a job that requires a uniform (which was professionally dry cleaned), I know I need to work a little harder on laundry before it OVERTAKES my life.

I am trying the following strategies:

1.  Wash a load every day.  Dry a load every day.  Fold a load every day.---it takes minutes to start a load and switch the load into the dryer.  The task of folding laundry takes a little longer but folding one load takes significantly less time than folding 4 or 5 loads.

2.  Enlist your kids' help.---Kids as young as 4 or 5 are excellent folders and can put their own clothes away.  Younger kids can sort socks, fold washcloths, etc.  Put your kids to work taming the laundry monster with you.  They are great company and many hands make light work!

3.  Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.---This popular phrase applies to laundry too!  Does any child NEED 45 items of clothing?  That is how many shirts I counted in my sons drawer.  I reduced the amount he had (donate or pass down outgrown clothes to your own younger kids or friends with younger children, sell at a consignment store, etc.)  This helps in two ways...less clothes to launder and now it is far easier for clothes to be put away.  The drawer opens and closes a lot easier!

I am sure I will slip at times and end up with several loads of laundry to fold, but I am going to do my best to keep things on track laundry wise!  I would love to hear other tips for keeping laundry on track!

Tub Fun Tuesday-Foam Shapes In The Bathtub

Today's idea involves a package of craft foam, some scissors, and a little creativity.  My tub fun idea today is all about making foam shapes that your child can wet and then hang on the bath or shower wall.  My favorite things to make are clothing outfits (pants and shirts, skirts and blouses, dresses) and flowers/landscape scenes.  However, the possibilities are endless....ABC's, numbers, shapes, rainbows......Your kids can hang the shapes on the tub wall and then use bath tub crayons to complete their wall art.  You don't have to be an artist to create these fun foam scenes either.  Kids have fun regardless of your Picasso quotient.  Older children enjoy creating their own shapes as well.  It is also fun to hang your foam shapes on windows.  I can see this being a fun activity for my preschoolers when it is nasty outside!

Use Up Those Easter Jelly Beans With Jelly Bean Math

All kids need to learn how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide.  Knowing these skills is essential for moving on to higher math, and these basic math skills will be used daily for their entire lives.  However, some kids find learning math to be a chore rather than a fun learning experience.  I have one of those kids so I am always on the lookout for ways to make learning math appealing, and when I came across using jelly beans for math equations I was sold.  Jelly beans are tasty, economical, and usually plentiful after Easter.  This makes using jelly beans fun for kids and practical for their teachers.   I am including links to pages that have great jelly bean ideas for beginning math problems. Thank you to the blogs Feels Like Home and Kids Activities Blog for some great ideas.   Enjoy!

Simple Math Using Jelly Beans

and 

Multiplying And Dividing With Jelly Beans