Inspiration For The Weekend - 25 (4th of July crafts)

Independence Day is next week so I thought I'd share a few patriotic crafts that could be easily whipped up this weekend.

Here are some ideas for making your own 'firecrackers':

ideas found HERE and HERE

Patriotic Pinwheel instructions can be found HERE

Cute 4th of July decor - flag blocks.  Idea found HERE

Flag puzzle out of popsicle sticks.  You could write a patriotic saying on the sticks, rather than use it as a party invitation.  I already have a popsicle stick project in the works that I'll be sharing next week, but I may have to make this too.

You can find more 4th of July crafts HERE

If you want some cute 4th of July printables, check out Tip Junkie for ones like this:

And if you're planning to have a backyard BBQ, check out Moore Minutes for a great compilation of patriotic food ideas found HERE.

Spinach Smoothies

Lately I've been making green smoothies, or spinach smoothies.  I've seen them popping up on Pinterest and have been wanting to try them.  According to the 'reviews' you don't even taste the spinach.  Well, that's good news to me since I don't like the taste of spinach.  It took me a couple of weeks to muster up the courage to actually make these.  The first week I bought spinach but couldn't bring myself to make a vegetable smoothie so I used the spinach in a chicken recipe instead.

The next week, I was feeling a bit daring and decided it was time to try out some spinach smoothie recipes.  I tried several, and discovered that it's true, you can't take the spinach at all.  What a sneaky and delicious way to get veggies into our diet.  The smoothie recipes I liked best were the fruity ones, where you add spinach, ice cubes, frozen/fresh/canned fruit and some liquid like water or juice.

I used my old fashioned Osterizer blender.  And I do mean old fashioned.  It looks like it is from the 70's when the harvest gold and avocado colors were popular.  I don't leave this thing out on my counter so I don't care what it looks like as long as it works.   It worked fine, although some times I have to stop it and use a long spoon to mix things up a bit.  That usually happens when the smoothie is too thick and I end up adding a bit more juice to it.

This particular smoothie was made with:
ice
spinach
banana
frozen blueberries
strawberry yogurt

You need to blend it together till a vortex is formed in the blender like this:

You can add water or juice (I prefer orange or pineapple) to make it less thick so the vortex will form.

Pressure Washing Is Fun

As I mentioned on Friday, I've been doing a little more work on the outside of our house lately.  We borrowed a pressure washer, similar to this one, from my parents to clean up this green stuff that was forming on our siding. 

I did this last week while the Spencinator was at camp.  It also happened to be the hottest day of the year so far with it feeling like 100 degrees plus humidity.  So rather than conquer this job during the Babe's mid day nap, I decided to do it as soon as I got back from dropping the Spencinator off at camp.  But before I could tackle the siding, I had to keep the girls occupied.   We have a water table that's always been a big hit in the summer but was looking pretty yucky.  Normally I take a Clorox wipe and give it a scrubbing, but since I had the pressure washer out, I decided to use that.  Or rather, Sweetie Pie decided she wanted to be the first one to try out the new toy (the pressure washer, not the water table).

Inspiration For The Weekend - 24 (updated bench)

I'm still keeping my flower beds under control, and have even done a little more work outdoors which I'll post about next week.  Improving your outdoor living space is something I've been working on, so when I saw THIS:

I couldn't help thinking it was cute and where could I put one of my own.
We have a little table and chair set as seen here:

Perhaps I could brighten it up with some paint.

Anyone else paint an old wooden bench or picnic table to brighten up their patio?

Mom's Summer School

As I mentioned in this post, I try to have the kids do something educational each day.  They have termed it "Mom's summer school".   My goal is just to keep them in the habit of doing school work and to keep their minds sharp.  We try to do this everyday, but some days we are busy with camps or they are playing with friends so I let them skip.

All I really want them to do is some math and reading.  I figure the social studies and science part of learning is something that gets snuck in without them ever knowing.  For example we discuss social studies when we talk about the presidential election, or the different cultures of the people we see.  I don't even have to plan this, I just wait for them to bring something up and then I turn it into an educational lesson.

As for science, I have a couple of science activities like a crystal making kit, or we play with magnets, or do some sort of experiment like making candles where we discuss solid, liquid and gas.  Science lessons require some planning but I never present it as part of our school work.  I just say, 'hey, let's make crystals today'.  Or they are already playing with magnets and I talk about polarity and we see what is magnetic and what's not.  I'll even get a book about the thing we're doing and read it to them so they can learn more about it.  I have a science degree so this stuff is fun for me.  Does that make me a nerd or what?

As for reading, both of the kids love to read so I don't even have to ask them to do this.  Sweetie Pie has been staying up late, like 10pm late, and reading book after book after book.  She loves the Rainbow Magic Fairy books, and we have quite a collection, plus we get more from the library.  She reads a couple of those a night.  The Spencinator likes to read too and can get quite engrossed in a book.  We went to the playground last week and he was really into a book and didn't want to put it down.

Now getting them to do their math work is another story, especially when it comes to motivating a kid with autism.

Sweetie Pie (who will be going into second grade) is the easy one because she pretty much does whatever I tell her and needs little to no motivation for doing it.  I have some math workbooks (that I picked up at a garage sale) and her teacher sent home a summer work packet at the end of school.  I let her choose to do a page from her math workbook or the summer work packet.  She usually does two or three pages just because she finds it to be so much fun.  If she ever does give me attitude about doing her work, I can usually motivate her by saying I'll read her a story afterward or she can earn a Pokemon card for doing a page of math.

Yes, I have my own collection of Pokemon cards (something I picked up at a garage sale - can you tell I love garage sales).  Ever since some school friends gave my kids Pokemon cards, they have been really into collecting them.  Every kid in the neighborhood has some so they are always trading and organizing their cards.  Right now, earning new ones is a strong motivator for them.  And when I find something to motivate the Spencinator, I will use it for all it's worth.  As with most kids on the autism spectrum, they have to be motivated to do non preferred activities.  And schoolwork, especially math, is a non preferred activity for him.  Along with giving him a reward for completing his work, I wait for him to tell me that he wants to do something like play a video game or play with a friend.  I then use that as an additional motivator.  I tell him that his school work needs to be done first.  All I'm asking for him to do is one page of a math worksheet or some flash cards with me, just to help him memorize simple math facts.  He knows he has to do math before the fun stuff and while he will argue about doing it, eventually he wants to do the fun stuff so much, he'll buckle down and get the math done.


So this is how things have been going so far, and it's working for us.
Do you have 'summer school' with your kids?
How do you motivate them?

Pots and Pans Organization

This summer is turning out to be busy, just like last summer, and I am loving it.  I'm running the kids around to various camps, activities, and trying to do fun stuff at home.  However, I still managed to squeeze in time to organize my pots and pans.  Actually I bought this lid organizing rack a couple of months ago and finally got around to using it.

Here is what my pots and pans cabinet looked like before:

 Not too bad, but lets take a closer look:

I know I have a lot, more than I need, although we do use most of it.  The pile of pans in the front right corner is toppling over because of the pot on top, and there is a jumbled mess of lids in the back right corner.

And here is what it looks like now:

First Full Week of Summer Vacation

Last week was the first full week of summer vacation and summer time fun was in full swing.  Here is a run down of how our week went.  Minus the boring stuff like housework and school work.  Yes, I make my kids do schoolwork over the summer, we call it "Mom's summer school".  I'll have to post about what we do later.

Monday was a fun filled day.
We were at the library by 10AM to return books and check out new ones.  Then there was a puppet show put on by the library.  Almost each week the library has some type of activity planned for the summer.  Since we were in town and it was hot, I thought we'd go to the pool.  The pool doesn't open till noon so we had some time to kill.  We had a picnic lunch at a playground before spending 4 hours at the pool.   The Babes loved the fountain in the kiddie pool.

Inspiration For The Weekend - 23 (Quotes about Fathers)

With Father's Day coming up, I thought I'd share a few inspirational quotes about Fathers.

Any man can be a father. It takes someone special to be a dad.

~ Anonymous

The most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother.

~ Theodore Hesburgh

"...a father's calling is eternal, and its importance transcends time. It is a calling for both time and eternity" ("To the Fathers in Israel,"  Ezra Taft Benson: ("To the Fathers in Israel," Ensign, Nov 1987, 48.)

Fathers, like mothers, are not born. Men grow into fathers and fathering is a very important stage in their development.

~ David Gottesman

"Earn the respect and confidence of your children through your loving relationship with them. A righteous father protects his children with his time and presence in their social, educational, and spiritual activities and responsibilities. Tender expressions of love and affection toward children are as much the responsibility of the father as the mother. Tell your children you love them"   Howard W. Hunter: ("Being a Righteous Husband and Father," Ensign, Nov 1994, 49.)

A wise son maketh a glad father

~ Proverbs 10:1

Here's a great article by James E. Faust about being a good husband and father:
"Most men worry about succeeding in their life’s work and spend much time and effort at their profession. But I’ve learned that the way to put one’s professional life in order is to put one’s personal life in order. How can we be adequate at anything professionally without being adequate as men, husbands, and fathers first? "

A father carries pictures where his money used to be.

~Author Unknown

Another article by James E. Faust about how we can help strengthen the father:
"In order to strengthen the father in the home, I make two simple suggestions: first, sustain and respect the father in his position; second, give him love, understanding, and some appreciation for his efforts."

He didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.

~Clarence Budington Kelland

Happy Father's Day!  I hope you are able to spend some time remembering and honoring your Father and the other 'Fathers' that have influenced your life.

Pictures of Kids' Shadows

In an earlier post about Father's Day ideas, I mentioned this one by 'twogirlzstuff':

 

I thought I'd try to recreate it as a Father's Day gift for my husband.  I wasn't quite sure how she got the letters cut out or what type of paper she used so I worked with what I had and made it as easy as possible.

I didn't have large poster board which is probably what was used in the photo above since it would be stiff.  And I didn't feel like getting the exacto knife out and cutting through cardboard, so I used 12 x 12 cardstock.  I also substituted "U" for "daddy" just to make it fit better in the cardstock and make the cutting easier. 

I took the kids outside on a sunny day and was thrilled to get all three kids cooperating and thought my picture had turned out great.

 That was until I realized it was upside down.  I tried flipping it in Photoshop but then the "We" and "U" were in the wrong spots.  So we did a re-take on the following day.

Laundry Tips

I can never sit back and relax.  I've got to make things difficult for myself.  A couple of months ago, I decided that this summer would be the summer to teach my 7 and 9 year olds to do laundry.   Why now and not next year, I don't know, maybe because I'm just tired of doing it.

They've helped me with laundry before, but this time, I want to train them to be able to sort, wash, and dry on their own.  I'll still help with the folding as I prefer my clothes not to be a big wrinkly mess.

Sweetie Pie is the easy one.  I can get her to do anything, she is always willing to please.  Most times I don't even have to bribe her.  But, the Spencinator, he's a totally different ball game.  Getting someone with autism to do a non preferred task, well, that takes a lot of motivating.   This is where his preference for a particular type of shorts/pants will be to my advantage.  He 'conveniently' ran out of the shorts he likes to wear on Monday and stated that he had nothing to wear.  I had been preparing him for this day, even before school ended, saying this summer he's going to learn to do the laundry.  So when I mentioned to him that he'll have to do a load of laundry, he didn't fight me.  I gave him some control over the situation by giving him a choice of doing lights or darks.  He choose lights.  I guided him in sorting the colors and he carried the laundry into the laundry room.

Sorry this picture is blurry, but I just had to show you this basket.  It is very similar to this one
Sterilite 12228003 Wheeled Hamper with Titanium Handles and Wheels, White
except my handle isn't retractable.  I just love this laundry basket because it has a handle and wheels.  I have even carried it one handed down the stairs with a baby in my arms.  Makes carrying laundry so much easier, especially since you can just pull it behind you - really saves your back.

I showed him how to work the dials and how much soap to put in.  He got a little help in loading the washer too.  So the first week of doing laundry went OK.  I'm hoping with each passing week the kids will do more and more of it on their own.  Meaning I'll be doing less and less of it!

And speaking of laundry, I've seen a few laundry tips on Pinterest that I thought I'd share.

Like this one about using a foil ball instead of a dryer sheet found over at:
http://junkintheirtrunk.blogspot.com/2011/10/static-cling.html


I tried this and it worked just as well as using a dryer sheet.  The types of clothing that gets static-y when I use a dryer sheet, still get static-y using a foil ball.  And I even tried 2 foil balls, and then 2 foil balls plus a dryer sheet.  For some reason my fleecy fabrics and my silky type fabrics always end up with static.  That is unless you don't fully dry them.  So now instead of using a foil ball or a dryer sheet, I don't over dry my clothes.  I'll still use an occasional dryer sheet for those static attracting fabrics, but for the rest of my laundry, I don't use dryer sheets anymore.  And no one in my family has noticed.  Even my husband who was leery about it at first hasn't noticed a difference in softness, smell, static, or anything.

And this one about using chalk to get rid of grease and oil stains: http://lifehacker.com/5539368/dry-up-grease-stains-with-plain-white-chalk?

I don't know if this works, as I haven't tried it on a new grease stain.  I neglected to read the fine print where it states that "once that stain sets, no amount of chalk will save you",  and tried it on an existing grease stain which did not come out.  So I still have my chalk ready and waiting for the next grease stain so I can put this claim to the test.


 


 Another laundry tip I haven't tried is:
using baby powder to prevent sweat stains on white shirts.

Anyone tried this?  Does it really work?

















I also haven't tried using
Dawn dishwashing liquid and Hydrogen Peroxide to remove armpit stains.

Again, anyone have luck using this technique?


Another laundry tip that I've been doing is to run the washing machine for an additional spin cycle after it is finished the regular washing cycle.  I usually do this when the load in the dryer isn't done drying yet so I can't switch the laundry.  The extra spin cycle helps to dry the clothes faster when you put them in the dryer which saves time and energy.


Any other laundry tips you guys want to share?   How do you get out set in stains?
How do you get your kids to help with laundry?



If this is your first visit to Controlling Craziness, click around and check out what else I've been up to.  Be sure to follow me using one of the options in the right side bar and feel free to share with your friends.
Thanks,
Christa

Summer Time Fun with Ice Eggs

I've gotten some fun summer time ideas off Pinterest.  We tried this one on Friday - Ice Eggs.

The original idea came from HERE.

First I put a small toy inside the balloon, then filled the balloon with water from my kitchen sink and tied it. 

 I used a plastic princess ring for Sweetie Pie and a rubber lizard for the Spencinator.  The ring floated to the top and the lizard sunk to the bottom.

Inspiration For The Weekend - 22 (more Father's Day ideas)

As promised in last week's Inspiration For The Weekend post, I'm back with some more Father's Day gift ideas.

This craft is similar to the Mother's Day craft I made for my Mom and Mother in law.  It was a big hit with them so I'm sure this version will be a big hit with the Dad's and Grandpa's out there too.

(image source)

Here's a cute canvas project for Dad.
Click on over to Roots and Wings to get the full tutorial.
You could easily add more kid's hands to the picture, or make the hands out of  fabric instead of patterned paper.

I found this one on Pinterest but there wasn't a source.  I'm guessing it's just a branch with the center sanded smooth and the vinyl saying applied to it.  You could paint on the saying or even do some wood carving.  It's a manly looking craft too, perfect for the rough and tough or outdoorsy-type Dad's out there.

Every Father is a super hero to his kids
which is why I love this cute printable
by Kiki & Company

A Proffittable Life made this great printable with "Dad-isms"

How many of them do you remember you Dad saying?










Here are a couple of links to even more Father's Day printables, crafts and home made gifts:
http://www.alililyblog.com/2012/05/50-super-awesome-free-fathers-day-printables.html 
http://www.tipjunkie.com/fathers-day-activities/
http://delightfulorder.blogspot.com/2011/06/fathers-day-gift-idea-with-free.html



Have a great weekend!
-Christa

Last Day of School / Welcome to Summer

In yesterday's post, I gave you a sneak preview of some of the things I had planned for the when the kids got home from their last day of the school year.

Things didn't go quite according to plan but we had fun anyway.
The kids go to two different schools which means two different forms of transportation and two different pick up and drop off times.  Sweetie Pie's bus stop is at the corner of our street and she usually gets picked up before the Spencinator's van comes to pick him up in front of our house.  Sweetie Pie's bus also brings her home a little bit before the Spencinator's van.  I'm usually walking back from the bus stop when his van pulls up to the house.  If you recall from yesterday's post, I made two "Welcome to Summer" banners (one for Sweetie Pie and one for the Spencinator) so they'd each have their own to burst through.  Since Sweetie Pie usually gets home first, I had her banner up and waiting for her while I went to the bus stop to meet her.  I also had the theme song to Phineas and Ferb playing on repeat with the windows open so you could hear it from outside.

However, it was the Spencinator who came home first.  I was at the bus stop waiting for Sweetie Pie so I had his driver just drop him off there rather than at home.   Once Sweetie Pie got off the bus, we headed for home. 

I love how happy she looks here.  Yeah for summer!

Welcome to Summer!

Today is the last day of school!

I made these banners for the kids to burst through as they enter the house.

In case it's not obvious, the top one is for the Spencinator and the one below is for Sweetie Pie.  I made them each their own so they wouldn't have to fight over who burst through it first - trying to start the summer on a good note.

I got the idea from HERE

I'll have the Phineas and Ferb theme music playing.  In case you are not familiar with the cartoon theme song, here is a link to the YouTube version and below are the lyrics.

"There's 104 days of summer vacation
And school comes along just to end it
So the annual problem for our generation
Is finding a good way to spend it

Like maybe...
Building a rocket
Or fighting a mummy
Or climbing up the Eiffel Tower

Discovering something that doesn't exist
Or giving a monkey a shower
Surfing tidal waves
Creating nanobots
Or locating Frankenstein's brain

Finding a dodo bird
Painting a continent
Or driving your sister insane

As you can see
There's a whole lot of stuff to do
Before school starts this fall

So stick with us 'cause Phineas and Ferb are
Gonna do it all! ""



Technically my kids have 81 days of summer vacation.
I have lots of fun things planned (and some education and cleaning/organization things too, but don't tell the kids) so keep checking in on us to find out what we're up to.
And be sure to check back tomorrow to see everything I did to Welcome Summer.

Mirror, Mirror On The Wall - Finally!

I actually wrote this post last night but when I checked my computer this morning, it only had one sentence.  I don't know what happened to all my words and pictures so I had to write it again.  Which  I did, but as soon as I published it, my pictures went missing.  The third time's a charm, so here it is:

Remember this mirror that I got such a good deal on.

If you don't remember you can click on over to this post to refresh your memory.

I was going to put it in the master bedroom above one of the nightstands.  Well, I never found a coordinating mirror to go over the other nightstand so it never got hung up.  And then I changed my mind about having round mirrors in the master bedroom anyway so it's kind of a good thing I didn't hang it.

Would you like to know where I decided to hang it?
It only took me three months but I feel like it's in the perfect spot....

R flat

I was trying to be funny with the title of this post.  I think it would be funnier if our last name began with a B instead of an R.  Get it, B flat, but since this is about the letter R, I titled it R flat.  OK, I guess it's not so funny if I have to explain it to you.  But now you know how my mind works.  

All the way back in November I painted this letter R, as mentioned in this post for my living room gallery wall.  I used flat black spray paint.  And although I liked it much better than the original gold color, over time it seemed, well, kind of flat.  There wasn't really any dimension to the color.  

So I decided to spray paint over it lightly with some Oil Rubbed Bronze.  I used ORB for my quick and easy mailbox upgrade and loved it, so I thought I'd give it a try here too.  Now the letter has a bit of a shimmer to it which really picks up on the texture.  It's not a huge difference, but it's enough to make me happy.

Hmmmm, what can I paint next with ORB?

Inspiration For The Weekend - 21 (Father's Day Ideas)

With Father's Day being about 2 weeks away, I thought I'd share some cute things you can help the kids make for their Dad.

Of course these ideas aren't mine.  So be sure to click the link under each picture to find out more it.

Get to know what your kids really think about Dad with some questionnaires.  The answers can be quite entertaining.  It would be cute to do this every year and see how their answers change.


I know this one is hard to read, but some of the cute questions are "What makes Daddy the best" and "Where did you and Daddy meet".  Pink Peppermint has also created a Granddad version you can check out HERE.    

source

 Daddodil Design created this 'All About Dad' Father's Day printable which they framed and embellished with some homemade bunting.

source


 Eighteen25 made a special keepsake book all about 'The Best Dad in the World'.

source


TwoGirlzStuff took a picture of her kids holding up a 'We love daddy' sign to create a cool image.  Scroll to the bottom of the post and read the comments to find out how she did it.  It's easier than it looks.  You just cut the words out normally on a pice of paper but hold it upside down and backwards so it reads correct in the shadow.

source

  Amy from Positively Splendid made this cute photo collage with her kids.  She explains how she created the collage using Picasa.

source

Stay tuned for next week's Inspiration For The Weekend, when I'll share some cute Father's Day crafts and more printables.