New Experiences

I love Pinterest.  Somedays I love it so much I "save" it for later because I don't want to use it up.  Not that you can since there are endless amounts of pins to explore.  I saw one pin from a mom who had committed to trying 52 new things every year with her kids.  Some easy, some hard, some exotic, you get the picture.  I thought it sounded fun so we are on the same journey, with our own experiences.  I intended to borrow some of her ideas but so far have only used her ideas once, as a starting point.

People, we licked batteries.

That was the 1st week of Jan.  And yes they shock you, but only the 9 volt.  The boys tried other batteries with no effect.  Side note: there was a lot of licking going on for several days.

 The second week of January we ate black olives.  This doesn't sound super exciting, but the idea is to try new things and that was new for us.  They loved them, especially Liam.  He has been asking for black olives on nearly everything ever since :)

Stay tuned for a catch up of the rest of the weeks, plus our future new experiences!

No Guilt

It's a new year and that means a new, fresh start in our realm.  I will not feel any guilt for not posting in forever, no apologies either.  (Side note, I read somewhere that women feel the need to apologize  more often than men.  Sorry but that's weird).

First in a Second Series

I follow the "Manic Mommies" podcast and blog.  They are two working moms whose lives are manic from work, children, life, etc.  Their tagline is "The podcast for moms who do it all, and then some".  While I don't work outside the home, I definitely am a working mom and I can relate to them.  Their recent blog post inspired this second series of posts for my blog which I will now steal.  Welcome to "Photo Friday".  I will put up one, or a few, pictures which I think capture a mood, a noteworthy event, or just make me happy.  I am not a "Scrapper" nor a journal-keeper.  I try to write down the cute things the kids say and do, but now I have several scraps of paper with cute anecdotes floating around the house.
So without further ado:

In honor of St. Patrick's Day here are Rainbow Cupcakes.  I think they look like meteorological maps.

Here is Chloe wanting to be picked up.  By me.  This is all day.

"Two-for" Friday

Ok, well Thursday is my Busy Day with multiple drop-offs until after 2 pm which is why there was no MOM 101 tip yesterday, even though I promised four in a row.  To make up for it, here are two MOM 101 tips AND a Friday Foto (another new series I am incorporating.  More on that later and separately.)

MOM 101 tip #1:  When you finish a carton of milk, fill the now-empty container with water (about 1/2 full).  Shake well and use that milk-water to water your plants/garden.  The milk residue is good for the plants.  My aunt does this and she can grow ANYTHING.  Forget about a green thumb - she has a green arm!
MOM 101 tip #2: When babies are sick with a cold and stuffy nose, a vaporizer in their room is good for them.  In addition put Vapor-rub on the soles of their feet.  I don't know why this works but it does!  Right before bed, and again in the morning, rub their little feet with the Vapor-rub cream/gel (whatever it is.)  As a side note I know some people don't like the smell of Vapor-rub but I do!  I think it's invigorating and really clears the sinuses in a good way :)

Mom 101 (make-up #1)

Most mornings my kids eat oatmeal for breakfast.  Whenever I cook breakfast they eat oatmeal.  It's easy and most importantly it's nutritious.  I have it down to a science - I can whip up a bowl in under three minutes.  I use the microwave because I like to cook the oatmeal with milk and I don't like the smell of boiling milk.  Here's the routine:
1.  Pour 3/4 c. of milk in the bowl.
2.  Add 1/2 c. of oats (I use Quaker non-quick cooking oats)
3.  Cook for 1 minute, stir, cook for 1 more minute.
4.  Now here's the Thing I Do: I use frozen blueberries to cool the oatmeal.  It's so easy AND it makes a nutritious, tasty breakfast even more nutritious and tasty!  I try to use wild blueberries because they're supposed to be better for you and that makes me happy.
I read a similar tip somewhere except they used frozen milk cubes.  That doesn't work for me because I don't want to waste space in my freezer for ice cube trays, plus it would be too much liquid once the milk cubes melted. 

Did I say series?

Well what good is posting the first in a series if there is only one?!  So in retribution I will post one Mom 101 tip every day for the rest of the week.  That is four, so should make up for the last four posts that should have been written.  Hopefully I have enough "Mom wisdom".  (The last bit was sarcastic.  I have enough Mom wisdom to write a book.  Or at least a blog).

First in a Series

I was grocery shopping with my mom the other day.  She gave me a tip which saved me some money, and I realized, she should have a blog.  She knows so many awesome tips and tricks about everything.  For example: when you finish a container of milk, add water to the jug, shake it up, and water your plants.  The milk residue is good for your plants.  I am not trying to pass either of us off as master gardeners, or experts in any way.  But these tips work and I thought I'd share.
  The working title for this series is "Mom 101" until I think of something better.  (Totally open to suggestions).  So here is today's lesson:
When shopping for spices at the market look for the little Hispanic section.  It's usually near the Produce Section and pretty inconspicuous.  It's not the "Hispanic Foods Aisle".  It'll be a wall, or maybe a corner.  There you can find a lot of spices for a fraction of the price.  Example: I was a FoodMaxx the other day (the day of my epiphany).  I needed cumin and said I was going to the Spice Aisle.  Mom said no, look for the Hispanic spices.  I had to ask a clerk, who didn't know what I was talking about.  I described to her that I wanted the spices that come in a bag.  After a few false starts I found it.  I bought 16 oz of cumin for $3.98.  The cumin in the Spice Aisle (in the jar) was 2 oz for $2.96.  That is a huge savings!!  It's a lot of cumin but I'll use it.  You can use cumin in everything - gives food a nice smoky flavor.  I use whenever I cook meat.
They have a variety of your basic spices.  Don't look for Old Bay there, but thyme, paprika, saffron - it's all there and cheap.   Thanks Mom!