Painting the Tub

This goes back to that week of snow.  One thing we did was water paints for the tub.

Recipe

• 4-6 Tb baby soap
• 1 tsp water
• 1 Tb corn starch
• 2-3 drops of food coloring

I divided the mixture into three cups before adding food coloring for more variety.  My toddler loved it- although it wasn't the cleanest she's ever gotten from a bath.

Colored Snow

Not the yellow kind.

I know it's spring but a few weeks ago we had an unusual snow storm that shut down the schools for an unheard of length of time. (I know not much snow in the pictures. It was the rapid melting- and further snow- that closed the schools.)

What do you do when the kids are unexpectedly home for the week?  Play in the snow of course!

Snow angels, snow forts, sledding.  And this inexpensive idea

 All you need:

• A water bottle
• Food coloring

Poke a hole in the lid of the bottle.  My friend used a hammer and small nail for this.
Fill bottle with water and food coloring of your choice.

Take it out and draw pictures in the snow.

Easy Removal of Tinted Windows

We live in the middle of a dessert and almost all of the roads are dirt.  A 4-wheel vehicle is almost a necessity.  So we saved up our pennies (we believe in paying cash) and bought a big truck. Crazy!


Well, the windows were very tinted.

 Like no way they would ever pass safety in our state- 2% light tinted.

We had heard of the old, grueling, razor blade method of removal, but we that is messy and takes a long time.


So...

Easy Way to Remove Tint from Windows

Supplies

• Razor blade
• Steamer (or an iron with steam works too)

1. Roll down window slightly. Using the razor blade make a small cut in the tint.

2. From the top steam the tint.  As the glue melts, pull the tint away from the window.

3. If any glue is left, steam it and use the razor blade to scrape it away.

Tada! It took us about 20-30 mins a window.

Baby Blowout!

Every parent of an infant inevitably experiences "The Blowout".

Who wants to take that poopy mess back over their child's head?

My husband discovered something I wish we would have known with our first child.  Those little onesies with their funny shoulder flaps are made so that they fold down!  You can roll the onesies from head down and keep the explosion contained to the bomb site.

Awesome!

Microwave Cleaning

The spaghetti exploded, the kids' cheese tortilla melted off the plate. No matter how careful you are, the microwave just gets dirty!  Dirty and then those messes get baked on all sides of the microwave.

Here is the easiest way to clean a microwave.  After doing this I was able to clean it one handed.

Spray vinegar/water 50/50 % solution on the sides of the microwave (or where the biggest mess is).  Microwave for 15-30 seconds.  Open door and wipe the mess clean!

Yes, awesome.

 Here is a sample of the mess.  Ug, gross!

Yay! Clean!

Permanent Marker on Toddler's Face

My toddler got a hold of a permanent marker and applied her lovely new makeup product to her nose and cheek.   I did worry what her face would look like for church the next day.

Turns our permanent marker is not all that permanent.
Here's what we did:
A little baby lotion on a cotton ball and it rubbed right off (to an almost unnoticeable state anyway).  I am sure baby oil would work just as well.

Whew, glad that disaster was evaded. 

Homemade Moby Wrap

My first kid loved to be held ALL the time!  We (Both baby and I) hated the carrier I had for her and I developed a very painful case of tendinitis from constantly holding her.

Expecting my second I started to look into other carriers/slings/wraps for baby.  That's when I saw the Moby Wrap.

Once again it was the price that I did not like. Then I thought, "I bet I can make that!"

I went online found about a dozen tutorials for homemade ones and sure enough each one was super easy, I'd be kicking myself if I paid $40 for one.

All you need is:

• 5 yards of fabric (My stretchy fabric's edges would not fray so it was a no-sew wrap)
• A pair of scissors
• And someplace long enough to roll out the fabric

After looking at all the tutorials, I went to the local fabric store and began to look around. (On a side note if you are going to need help picking out a fabric avoid going around Halloween when all the crazy crafty people are shopping to make homemade costumes.  It was like Christmas time at a toy store.) Anyway, after fighting crazy lines and looking through hundreds of fabric trying to find the right kind, we bought one that I hoped would work and took it home.

I rolled it out in my hallway and cut the fabric in half the long ways (hot dog style.)

And that was it! Two wraps for less than the price of one store bought.

You can undo that twist in the back and I usually knot it twice for good measure

Two Steps Further

After trying on the wrap- it worked!!!- I want to put a little iron on patch to mark the center. (Way cuter than a Moby Wrap tag).  I also want to tapered off the ends for easier trying.

Now my baby gets held and I have free hands to take care of my toddler.  Love it!