Works for Me Wednesday

We love the library.  I've always enjoyed reading.  Picking up a book to learn something new or escape into another work is one of my favorite activities.  I'm continually amazed by the amount of information we have available at our disposal.  If you're interested in something, there's probably about a book out there to tell you about, how to do it, the history of it, how other people have experienced it or how to avoid it.

Funny enough, I married a man who never liked to read.  For him, reading was torture growing up.  Faced with the choice of reading a book for pleasure or having a tooth extracted, he would have been hard pressed to make a decision.  He avoided books like the plague.

So we decided early on that we wanted to instill a love of reading in our children.  One of our consistent prayers is that the kids would love to read.  And although Daddy started out reluctant, he would read simply so that our kids would see him reading.  Over time he has come to enjoy reading himself.

One of the cornerstones of our week is attending story time at the library.  Our consistency ebbs and flows with other activities in our lives, but whenever the topic of story arises, our son is eager go jump in the car and go.  This is a great activity for many reasons.  Number one, it gives me a break to get out of the house with the kids and meet other moms.  I have made plans many times to meet other ladies there and enjoy a hour of so with the kids, being entertained by someone other than "mom."  Number two, it exposes my kids to a variety of topics and books that I wouldn't have ever picked up.  Once a month, a local author reads to the kids and her books are fantastic.  Sadly though, they aren't anything that I would have picked up on my own.  So I've been very happy to "discover" her literary style.  And finally, it's free.  Every mom, frugal or not, loves "free."  It's something we can do together without taking out a small loan.  I love the resource of our library.  It works for us.

For more Works for Me ideas, check out www. rocksinmydryer.typepad.net.  But beware; it's addictive.

Teaching Tuesday

Alphabet Match Up

Material:

Plastic Alphabet Letters

Alphabet Cards

Directions:

1. Mix up the alphabet letters in a bowl.  

2. Turn alphabet cards right side up and mix them.

3. Child chooses a card from the pile.

4. Child must search through bowl to find corresponding plastic letter.

5. If a match is made on the first try, child keeps mates and make have a second turn.

6. If a match is not made, the child put letter and card back and turn goes to the next person.

Menu Monday

Yeah, our menu last week stretched a long way. That and having spaghetti on Sunday, ... we still have lots of groceries and ideas for this week. So some of this is "repeats" and some is new.

Monday:

Yogurt, fruit, milk

Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, crackers, juice

Lentil tacos, spanish rice

Tuesday:

Cottage cheese, toast, milk

Leftovers, juice

Potluck: Taco ring

Wednesday:

Fruit cocktail, cottage cheese, milk

Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (or leftovers), cheese cubes, juice

Pea soup, homemade bread

Thursday:

Yogurt, toast, milk

Leftovers, juice

Crock pot chimichangas

Scrambled eggs, milk

Tuna sandwiches, salad, juice

Black bean burgers

Saturday:

Gingerbread waffles, milk

Quesadillas, juice

Chicken chow mein, salad

Sunday:

Waffles from freezer, milk

Sandwiches, juice

Leftovers

For more great ideas: check out www.orjunkie.com

Around the Home Thursday

Budgeting has been on my mind a lot lately.  But so has creativity.  I think that's why I most enjoy being frugal.  For the creativity of it.

Sure there are times I'd love to go out and BUY something, some times anything.  But learning to stretch a tight food budget or looking for new says to "spoil" someone tends to bring out the creativity in me.  And that's fun.

So here are just a few of my favorite little "gifts" specifically geared toward grandparents:

• Altered photo frame: I took a simple inexpensive wooden frame and covered it with patterned paper.   Embellish it and fill it with a cute photo of the kids.
• Burn a CD of your favorite photos of the kids.
• Make a paper bag album.  We titled our "Nana and Papa's Brag Book.  Each page had predesigned layouts for them to fill later.
• Family calendars with photos of kids and grandkids.
• Altered recipe card holder.  Have hubby cut a slit in the top of a basic wooden rolling pin the size of a 3 x 5 index card and cover with pretty patterned paper.  You can often find these at the dollar store.
• Seeds started during a science project with your kids.
• Any clothing item made with this art project: http://creative2xmom.blogspot.com/2008/02/activity-wensday.html
• Pinecone wreaths made from items collected during the kids' nature walks.
• Framed family photos.  One year we got all the kids and grandkids together and took a photo.  Had it framed and wrapped with all our signatures on the matting.
• Bake, can, and cook with your kids.  Make layered mixes of your favorite dishes for them to enjoy at home.

Whatever you decide to do, make sure it's fun and comes from the heart.  Grandparents love things that the kids were involved in.  Ask your kids for ideas and see what they come up with.  They just might surprise you.  And above all else, see where your creativity takes you.   

For more money saving tips, check out: www.biblicalwomanhoodonline.com/blog.html

13 Essentials for a New Mother's Diaper Bag

I had a great time this weekend attending my cousin's baby shower.  I'm so excited that she's having her first baby: a little boy.  I can't wait to see him.  She's going to be an awesome mother. Even though she's the youngest, she's always been a natural mother.  This baby is very lucky.

So in honor of my little cousin, I'm posting a list of my top 13 essential items for a new mother's diaper bag:

1. Burp clothes: These are important for so many reasons.  Obviously they protect you and the baby when you're burbing your child.  But they're also great for a teething child or for cleaning out the bulb syringe.  I mostly used cloth diapers.  They were super absorbent and big for those larger messes.

2. A great receiving blanket: I carry at least two.  They're great for covering when you need to nurse in public and for swaddling a fussy baby.  

3. Gas drops: My pediatrician recommended that we give our son a dose every time we changed him.  Furthermore, I took a dose every time to relieve gas after my C-section.  It helped our son sleep better and have fewer hiccups.

4. Baby tylenol and thermometer: I can't tell you how many times both of these items calmed my nerves.  As a new mom, I needed that extra peace of mind knowing what my child's temp was and knowing that I could ease his pain after those vaccines.

5. Mentholatum: I don't know why but this works.  When my kids have colds, I rub a little on their feet and they get better.  Simple solution, but works fantastically.

6. Nursing pads:  I love those by Lansinol.  They are very absorbent and economical.  The breast cream by the same company is also very beneficial.

7. Wipes: I've found that the store brand wipes are just as effective as brand name.  However, I always try to buy fragrance free items.  With a slight history of sensitive skin in the family, I tend to avoid dyes and fragrances.  Who needs 'em anyway?

8. Diapers: Need I say more?  These are very similar to the wipes.  Store brand are really just as effective.  We tried a couple of different brands with our son.  He was so long and skinny; some brands just weren't tight enough to his little body.  Finally we settled on Kirkland and Pampers.  But really Kirkland were just as effective at a lower price.

9. Extra hat, socks, outfit: If you leave the house without a hat, it will rain.  If you leave without socks, your child will loose one.  If you leave without extra clothes, your child will spit up.  It's a given.  

10. Snacks and drinks: for you and your child.  Of course your child won't be eating right away, but when they start, a baggie of cheerios can go a long way to getting you out of Target without buying snacks and having your sanity in tact.

For more Works for Me ideas, check out: www.rocksinmydryer.typepad.net.