Gratitude

Recently I have been so full of gratitude.  Yes, I'm sure a certain holiday this month has helped bring blessings to my mind.  We have been given so much.

My husband is finishing his last semester in school.  Finances have been stretched, and I have learned so much by learning to stretch along with it.

One day I was frustrated by feeling like we has so little.  God sure opened my eyes. I realized that though this semester, by finding cheaper ways to do/make things than just run to the store, I have learned things that will save our family thousands of dollars in the future.  They are not that difficult of things either.

 I  also began to look around at all of the blessings and things we did have. Technically, because of our student income we are considered "poor".  We have everything we need and a lot of our wants too. We are so blessed, we have plenty of food, housing, clothes (a lot of them), transportation, entertainment, and no debt. None of the things we own or do are particularly fancy, but it works and we are happy to have them.  Poverty?  This is not.  A one room shack with three families living in it, with no oven or running water, that's poverty.  Access to only two or three types of food and never enough to fill your belly. That's called poor. And I hear when people travel to impoverished countries they find people who are happier than us with all our stuff.

Sometimes we live such inflated lifestyles, needed all the latest gadgets the day they arrive on the store's shelves, stuffing ourselves at all-you-can-eats, buying new clothes every season,  and entertaining ourselves with things that suck away our paychecks.

I am grateful for the many blessings we do have.

Happy Thanksgiving Everybody.

Powdered Sugar

With the Holidays sugar is one thing we consume a lot of.  Here is how to make powdered sugar.

1 cup white sugar
1 TBSP cornstarch

Blend in blender about 1 to 2 minutes until fine.  If it is too grainy keep blending.

Yields 1 cup


It probably won't get as fine as store bought.  Also, only blend one cup at a time.  More than that makes it hard to get as powdery as you need.

Food Sensory Activities

I already posted about salt and sugar as a great sensory activity for toddlers.  The food exploration continues.

• Flour
• Corn Meal
• Rice and Beans container- Huge success by the way
• Water table- Be prepared for splashing

To enrich the experience I have added

• forks or spoons
• toy cars
• cookie cutters
• funnels
• straws
• small toys that can't be swallowed

If you are okay with messy, finger painting with yogurt, pudding, or the leftover baby food they refused to eat provides great entertainment for an extended period of time.

Have Fun Exploring!

Fine Motor With Empty Containers

I had an empty and washed out parmesan cheese container and was wondering what to do with it, when I thought it would be make a great fine motor activity.  I was right, my toddler loves it.  Okay, not so much the container, but what she puts in it.  The smallest holes are just right for putting golf pegs through. Don't have golf pegs?  Well, you're still in luck, the lids from baby food jars are the perfect size for pushing through the large end of the container!*

*Some containers may have different size of holes, I used a Western Family 100% grated Parmesan Cheese.

Spending is Not Saving

Just a small soap box moment.  I went to a seminar on "How to Save on Groceries" last Wednesday.  Coupons- which I rarely use.  Guess I can try them and see if they can lower my already low grocery bill- can't beat homemade.

Anyway, soap box- The presenter made the comment, "The more you spend the more you save."  NO!  The more you spend the more you spend!  With the "spend so you can save" philosophy you can "save" yourself right into a whole lot of debt if you're not careful.  Let's define some money terms: Getting paid to do work is called Earning, keeping your money is called Saving, giving it away- even for a "great deal"- is called Spending.  We do all three, but one is not to be confused as another.  That is all.

Stringing "Beads"

Most toddlers don't have the dexterity to string beads.  Here's a modified version, that I saw on this website: whatwedoallday.com

I made a second using stiffer sting which seems to work better for those just learning.

For more awesome activity ideas check out this blog:
http://www.thestay-at-home-momsurvivalguide.com/p/toddler-activities.html
or this site
handsonaswegrow.com

Yeah, I wasn't the first to think of these ingenious ideas.

Homemade Mounds

I think I like candy too much. Time to give candy its own label.  There are lots of ways to make this, I go for simple, cheap, and maybe slightly healthier...maybe.  It makes a lot so have fun sharing with friends.

Mounds

3/4 cup Hot Mashed Potatoes
1 lb Coconut (unsweetened)
1 lb Powdered Sugar
1 tsp vanilla (if desired)

Mix it all together and pour into a baking 9 x 11 baking dish (larger or smaller based on how thick you want it.

Melt package of semi-sweet chocolate chips (or almond bark) and pour over the top.  Refrigerate till firm.

Ready for variations?

• You can melt half milk chocolate half semi sweet, or use almond bark for a more mound like flavor.
• Or use all milk chocolate and place almonds in it to make Almond Joys.
• Or you can roll the coconut mixture into balls and roll that in the melted chocolate and let it set up on parchment paper so it looks even more like the candy bar.