Back Again?

Even though this blog is on my mind a lot, I haven't written in nearly a year - yikes! Where does the time go?! The kids always keep me on my toes, plus I've been busy with a few personal struggles that take most of my remaining energy (I intend to share at a later time, just not quite yet...). Although on one hand blogging feels like another item on my t-do list, I've always found that writing is a great outlet for ME. I thoroughly appreciate any comments that you make, as I know someone besides just me is reading it! Maybe blogging should be one of the things I strive to do more whole-heartedly in 2014. 

On the home-preschooling front -- 

NEVEN is thriving! Reading signs everywhere we go, reading full (Level 2 -type) books, basic arithmetic is really starting to click with him, writing words by himself (still a hardcore capital-letters-user, but I get love letters nearly every day!), and imaginative play is in full gear. I know what I can do to help him thrive from here, but somehow it doesn't seem as "fun" as the home-preschooling activities we were doing when I started this blog... 

DARIA is showing interest in learning to write her letters, and so I'm trying to use that to my advantage. Hopefully, writing here will hold me accountable for planning some focused (academic) activities with her. Tomorrow, she starts a toddler gymnastics class! 

Today's Activity: BAKING
I was looking for something simple to make with the kids, and came across this recipe: http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/gluten-free-vegan-banana-peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-cookies/. They use pretty healthy ingredients (no butter, no sugar), and turned out amazing. They also happen to be gluten-free and vegan. 
Since once of the main ingredients is banana, they turned out a bit soggy - Not sure how they'll keep/freeze, but I'm going to try. 

Neven was able to help with nearly every step.

Yum!

Big hit with the kids!

DIY Bean Bags

Truthfully, these bean bags were inspired by my indecisiveness - I didn't decide whether or not I was going to a birthday party until the last minute, then realized I wanted to take along a gift! I found an idea similar to this one online, and altered the pattern to fit my needs. 

Part I: Decoration
The decoration for on these bean bags could be anything - animals, trucks, different colors, printed fabric... Here, I used letters to spell our friend's name. 
1. Cut 3x3-inch pieces of fabric for the letters; you'll need one piece per bean bag. I used muslin, then tie-dyed letters using sharpie markers and rubbing alcohol (full how-to here). 

Part II: Making the bean bags
1. Cut 6x6-inch pieces of fabric for the bean bags (shown here, purple); you'll need two pieces for each bean bag. 
2. Using a decorative zig-zag stitch, attach the decorative fabric to the center of a 6x6 square. 

3. With right sides together, sew one blank 6x6 square to one decorated 6x6 square, leaving a 2-inch opening. 

4. Flip right side out, and iron the edges flat. 

5. Fill The bean bag. I used a combination of dry pinto, black, and garbanzo beans. 
6. Topstitch around the edge. 

The finished bean bags! This one was for a sweet friend of ours in Taos, who was turning 2 years old. 

 

Kitchen Activities

Here are some simple and fun ideas for involving kids in the kitchen... or just some yummy snack ideas! :) 


1. Snail Snacks (from Big Backyard Magazine, which we love!): 
Lay a tortilla flat. Layer cream cheese, turkey, lettuce, or anything else you can think of. Roll the tortilla, leaving a bit at the end un-rolled (this will be the snail's head). Add a small dollop of peanut butter for the snail's head, then add pretzel sticks for the antennae and/or raisins for the eyes. We also used a toothpick to keep our snails from unrolling... 

2. Honey Milk Balls 
A quick, no-bake, relatively healthy snack? My MIL gave me this recipe, remembering that Matt used to love them (he still does!). 

3. DIY Play Stovetop 
What I used: small cardboard box, decorative paper, 1 plastic yogurt lid, 2 milk lids, 2 screws, glue, and sharpie marker. No real method here... just tried to make it look like the original I saw. Even though I made it for Daria, she wasn't exactly sure what to do with it. Neven, on the other hand, was anxious to play! 

4. Milk --> Yogurt --> Cheese! 
I go in and out of phases where I make our own yogurt. We haven't made it for a while, and I figured this was a good time to talk to Neven about how it happens. BINARY FISSION was used in conversation between Matt and Neven at the breakfast table this morning... 
To make yogurt in your crock-pot (original recipe here, but I've tweaked it a bit): 
Turn crock-pot on low and pour in 1/2 to 1 gallon whole milk (supposedly you can use lowfat milk, but I haven't tried yet). Heat on low for 2.5-3 hours, or until the temperature is 180 degF. Turn the crock-pot off. Let the milk cool for 3-3.5 hrs, or until the temperature is 110 degF. Remove 1-2 c of the warm milk and place in a bowl. To that, add 1/2 c of yogurt with live active cultures (I find Greek yogurt works best) and mix well. Pour the yogurt-milk mixture back into the crock-pot and whisk thoroughly. Place lid back on crock-pot, wrap entire crock in a few thick towels, and let stand overnight 10-12 hrs. In the morning, spoon off any excess liquid pooled on the surface. Stir yogurt, then place in containers. For best texture, refrigerate for 8 hrs before using. This recipe usually yields 2-3 quarts of yogurt, which can be stored in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks. 

To make thicker yogurt: 
Follow the instructions below for cream cheese spread, but only drain for about 1 hour. 
To make cream cheese spread: 
Line a colander with 2 layers of paper towels (or paper coffee filters) and place over a large bowl. Add yogurt and cover. Let drain, refrigerated for 4-6 hrs. To collect the cream cheese, I used a wooden spoon to scoop most out from the middle, then the rest will peel away from the paper towel. Discard liquid. Store in a container with a lid in the refrigerator. Add some honey and a dash of salt for a very yummy fruit dip! 

Watching the water drip out the bottom. 

Does the yogurt on Daria's forehead count as her stamp of approval?

Makes a great dip!

5. Blueberry Scones (from Parenting Magazine)
A recipe written to be kid- and dad-friendly, what could be simpler? This past weekend, not only did I get to sleep in until 8 am, I woke up to coffee brewing and fresh-baked scones! (For anyone interested... I bought the ingredients at the store, mentioned the idea of making scones to Matt, and left the recipe on the counter - still, they were YUMMY and VERY appreciated!!)

There's a Baby in the House?

Just in the past week or so, Neven has really taken to one of his baby dolls - the same one we got before he was born to introduce our dogs to the idea that a baby was going to be joining our family. Neven's "Baby" gets to go for most car rides with us, sleeps with Neven every night, and is with him first thing in the morning. She takes multiple naps a day (Neven has to nurse her to put her to sleep), she gets hot and cold (sleeper off, sleeper off...), and she likes to have books read to her. It's like Neven just realized there's a baby in the house, and is copying all that I do with Daria. I'm loving seeing this sweet side of him! 


It just so happened the same week, a good friend of mine asked me to make a baby carrier for her 2.5 year old daughter. Lucky for Neven, I got the design wrong on the first try, and so he ended up getting one for Baby. 

Do-It-Yourself Baby (doll) Carrier
For those of you that might be interested, here's how I made the carrier. REALLY simple to do! If you're not a sewer or a do-it-yourselfer, but know someone who might like a baby doll carrier for the holidays, let me know! ;) 

1. Cut fabric. You'll need two pieces that are 13x19 inches that will make the body of the carrier, and four pieces that are 3x36 inches (the length is pretty approximate!) that will be the waist and shoulder straps. 
2. With wrong side facing up, fold in the fabric about 1/2-inch on all sides and iron. Do this for both body pieces. 

 3. Place one body piece with wrong side facing up. Position the two waist straps at the bottom corners and the two shoulder straps on the sides about 1/3 of the way down as shown and pin in place. 

4. Place the second body piece on top of the first, wrong sides together. Pin into place. 

5. Sew around the edge, about 1/8-inch from the edge. For this carrier, my sewing machine was broken and so I did the sewing by hand. Although it took a lot longer, I prefer the look of the result! 

Finished!