When was the last time you cleaned your kid's car seat cover?

Well, that's too long!

I keep a very tidy house, but my car, that's a different story. It took me leaving town for a trip to finally getting around to washing my kids' car seat covers. The covers are really a pain in the you know what to get off and put back on! But, my mother-in-law and my mom are taking care of the kids for me while I visit the hubby and I would have been mortified if they'd seen the conditions of the car seats. I mean just look at the pictures...at least it was under the covers and the kids weren't actually in contact with all that crap! Oh, I'm up for Mother of the Year again...


Ok-do you see the melted, red crayon, fruit loops, cheerios, raisons, crumbs galore and even a Ritz cracker! HOW GROSS!

BUBBLING WITH JOY!

One of the best items I've purchased for my kids this Spring has to be a BUBBLE MACHINE. I bought the one pictured from Wal-Mart for $14.95 and it came with the batteries!!! (6 - Double "A") The volume of bubbles this machine produces is amazing! It's a simple pleasure that make my kids, well, bubbley! The machine is light and portable and even has a handle for carrying. Plus, its easy enough for my 4-year-old to operate and she is even able to pour in the bubble solution on her own. (Some machines have very small holes for pouring in the bubbles).

We run the machine whenever we're outside playing. But, what a great way to add fun to a party-from an outdoor birthday party, pool party, Forth of July festivities, or a tail gate party at a Jimmy Buffett concert!

If you're worried about the cost of bubbles (large Mirale Bubbles bottles at Wal-Mart are $2.50/each) Buy dish soap at the Dollar Store and make your own bubbles. Here's a good recipe-

Best Bubble Solution
1 Cup Water
2 Tablespoons Light Karo syrup or 2 Tablespoons Glycerin
4 Tablespoons Dishwashing liquid
from BabyParenting

Clean Up On Aisle 6 and 7 and 8 and...

OH, NO...

But, OH, YES!

I took the kiddos grocery shopping at the brand new SIGNATURE KROGER by our home. I was in such awe of the incredible fresh produce and selection of healthy, organic and International foods-I wanted to hug and kiss every single Kroger employee who greeted us! And being that the store just opened-there were friendly greeters aplenty.

Every aisle must of had three food sampling stations-I mean the kids and I basically ate dinner there. Oh, and the aisles were sooooo wide I didn't have to constantly push my way around someone who actually has time to read the ingredients on labels.

Well, I guess my son didn't get his fill on all the scrumptious samples and decided to open up some of the Danimals Drinkable Yogurts I placed in the cart. I was too busy checking out the store and checking off my grocery list to notice. My son managed to open two of the banana-flavored yogurt drinks. Too bad he has a slight drinking problem-the sticky goop dripped down his chin, down his shirt, onto the groceries piled in the cart and finally down onto the floor. I, the mom-of-year, didn't realize until I slipped in some of the yellow, liquidy mess. AAAHHHH! How did you? Oh, how could I be so drawn in to two for one sharp cheddar cheese...

We were pretty much done shopping at that point and I had everything on my list but straws-which ironically could have avoided the spillage.

We proceeded to the check out and my heart pounded as the swarm of employees begged for me to come to their check-out stand. "You really don't want to check me out," I said. They smiled and laughed-not knowing what sticky grossness awaited them. "No, really. Take a look." I gestured down to my son-the fish printed on his shirt barely visible through the banana yogurt that covered them. The checkers' and bag boys' eyes widened and they all laughed. Then, they grabbed paper towels and began to help me wipe down my son and our groceries. A manager came by thinking the package exploded and made one of the checkers go get me a new one. I tried to explain that their beautiful store held my attention so much that I didn't pay enough attention to my son! I'll have to make sure they have a cart with the play car attached to it next time. At least that will keep my son out of the groceries-if I'm too busy eyeing the 8 ears of corn for $1.00. Well, the bag boy got a good tip out of it anyway...

Day Care

When we finally bought our home, the kids needed a new day care. For the sake of convenience, I had been sending the kids to the same day care as my sister's children since we'd all been living together. I trust my sister's opinion and I had a great referral from her. Plus, it just made sense the kids all go to the same place. The day care facility, Kids R Kids was wonderful. My kids had been going solely to home day care so I was glad for my 4-year-old daughter to participate in a more tradition school setting and be better prepared for Kindergarten.
My biggest complaint of the day care was the cost-$300 a week for both kids. Yep, $300 A WEEK! That cost ate up a lot of my pay check.
Well, once we moved, I wanted to find more affordable day care and began searching for home day care again (from $150-175/week for two kids). I believed my daughter had enough of the classroom setting to prepare her for the transition into Kindergarten. Plus, home day cares are usually a more nurturing environment. The home day care options available for us were full so I looked into day care facilities. I found one close to my work in a little strip center. It's nothing fancy on the outside like Kids R Kids but the day care offers all the same things. And the cost is $190/week! The over-head for a day care in a strip center verses a beautiful, stand-alone building must be considerably less. In addition, the new day care provides three meals a day instead of just two-and their food is fresh and all-natural. I have been very happy with the facility and most importantly, my kids have been happy there. My son still cries when I drop him off, but once I'm out-of-sight he's fine. My daughter is doing well with the class work and brings home similar coloring pages and work sheets as from the fancier day care. Now I will add that Kids R Kids had other benefits that made the price so much higher such as a gymnastics instructor once a week. Their facility also included computer training for kids (at an additional cost) and more field trips than my kids' current day care.
When it comes to day care, I think what matters most is the kids. They should feel happy, safe and comfortable. I'm not going to judge a day care by it's exterior-it's what's inside that counts.

Ideas to create a kid's playroom

Sent to me from my friend TL, and printed in Wondertime-

Here's ideas you can borrow for an "ingenious playroom."

"One family converted their formal dining room (useless) into a cozy, kid-friendly playroom (decidedly useful!). Here, the six highly doable strategies they used that made the room really, truly works."

THIS PLAYROOM IS AWESOME!

While unpacking and getting settled in our new house, I found a daily report from the day care my kids used to attend. The paper was my son's and is like most day care reports. The teacher informed me via this sheet what my son ate, what he learned, how he participated, how he behaved and even when his diaper was changed and what was in it.
Unless there was some milestone described on the sheet, I usually tossed the daily report-I just can't stand clutter anymore and there is only so much stuff you can save. Well, I couldn't see any reason I had saved this particular correspondence-and then I remembered. I saved it for the blog. (If you recall the entry "Does this look like a bookmarker to you?"-you'll understand.)



I've taken as clear a picture as I can.

Each day the class had a Theme. On this day the Theme was "Fire Fighter." And the Word of the Week "Quicky."

Q - U - I - C - K - Y QUICKY.

Yah, right there in black and white... Quicky.

I immediately wondered what on earth they could be teaching my son? The dictionary states the definition as "hurried repair."

I know only one definition of this word and it once involved a fantacy fire fighter. Apparently, my son's teacher had the same fantacy and she ended up turning it into a Freudian Slip on my son's daily report.

The word of the week was actually "Quickly."

HAPPY MARDI GRAS! Kids love King Cake!

(Mardi Gras Boat Parade on the boardwalk in Kemah, TX)


My kids love KING CAKE.


Don't have a KING CAKE? Run out to the closest grocery store and buy two cans of pre-made cinnamon rolls and some purple and green sprinkles and/or food coloring.
Unroll each cinnamon roll and stick them together in long strands. Braid the strands together and place on a greased pan in the shape of an oval. Bake as directed. While the cake cools, dye the icing if using food coloring. Spread the icing on the cake and sprinkle. If on hand, you can add Mardi Gras beads for extra decor. Enjoy!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

It's not too late to make a homemade card for someone special!
My mom helped my daughter cut a simple paper doily (buy at the dollar store) into a heart shape. Then, they pasted it on to construction paper.
My daughter and my son added their own touches with crayons and markers.

And don't forget to express your love everyday!

HOME SWEET HOME

Sorry it's been a while since my last posting, but we've finally moved into our home! Our first home! (And we're still waiting for internet service).
It's overwhelming, it's awesome and we just love it! It took several months and the wait was well worth it. The house isn't too big or too small. I didn't want too much to clean or keep up with and there are enough bedrooms for everyone to have their own. The school district is great. The area is safe. Plus, we're two blocks from the water and close to lots of fun, family activities (such as the Kemah Boardwalk). And yet, the neighborhood is small-almost rural-and quiet. The house sits on two lots, so I have more yard than I really wanted to take care of-I'm thinking of buying a goat! (We don't have any deed restrictions either-we can do whatever we want with the place)
The kids are adjusting well to their new surroundings. The transition also meant a new day care. I've decided to take them to a place close to my work to keep them near me and lessen the burden of having to worry if I'm unable to pick the kids up for whatever reason. (The new day care is a whole other blog entry to follow soon!)
I'm having my 4 1/2 year-old daughter help in the unpacking and placing of things so she feels apart of the new house. She's seems rather proud of her room and I want her to make it her own. My husband and I will have to help out our two-year-old, but we'll be sure to pick furniture and a color scheme he will like for many years. (I'm not too big on theme/character rooms as kids grow out of stuff so fast.)

WELCOME TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD!
I have to end with a story about one of the neighbors welcoming us to the area. I was home that day with the kids because they were both sick. My son was pretty fussy and I was holding him while greeting our new neighbor. She's an elderly lady who lives next door. She came by to introduce herself and inform me when the trash is picked up. She told me about herself and even offered to watch the kids if I needed to run an errand sometime. She went on to tell me her husband had recently passed away and that she lived alone. My son started getting antsy in my arms and took my attention away from my neighbor. When I looked back up at her, she was crying, sobbing over the loss of her husband. As I tried to console her, my son threw up all over me.
Cue the vomit. What timing!
There we all were, standing right inside my back door. Me with throw up dripping off my face and coating my shirt trying to be a good listener and reassuring to the neighbor I've just met for the first time. I quickly, put my son in the kitchen sick and started to clean him up while still trying to be a good host to my neighbor. She soon gathered her composure, wished the kids well and went on her way. It was a surreal scene.
I look forward to checking in on my neighbor this weekend (without throw up on my face). We'll have some sweet tea and a good chuckle, I'm sure.

My 4 1/2 yr. old can cut in a straight line...

Recently, my four-and-half-year-old daughter decided she wanted bangs. She also decided that she was capable of giving herself those bangs. When I arrived home from work the day my daughter turned hairdresser, my sister showed me a small pile of blond hair. My sister was feeling quite apologetic and I assured her if my daughter was that determined it would have happened under my watch too. I then explained to my daughter how dangerous it is for her to cut her own hair and pleaded that she ask the next time she wanted her hair cut. My daughter simply stated she wanted bangs like Abilgail (a girl in her class) and she'd "promise to ask next time."

But I gotta mention, she did a pretty good job...(I wonder if she taking tips from the Hairapy Guys!)