Play…..

Lately, River has been into playing with the bin of little plastic beads.  These used to be in a special activity table, but the table was just too big and we had no room for it.  So, I transfered all the little plastic pebble thing to a large Tupperware bin.

That way it doesn’t take up so much room.  The only problem is that the little beads get all over the floor whenever she plays with it…..but I guess that is just part of the fun.

After all the fun is over…River is as excited to clean up the mess as she was to play.   In fact, I think she likes the vacuuming part MORE than the playing part.  She will spend hours vacuuming up every single little fallen bead.

She gets upset when I tell her we have to turn it off.   Who knew……

Staring….

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As a mother, do you constantly feel that someone is staring at you…sneaking up on you…ready to pounce with a need, want, or request?

Sometimes that’s how I feel…..like there is always someone there…waiting…staring….until you sit down for two minutes….waiting until you sit on the toilet…..waiting until you decide to call somebody on the telephone…….waiting until you step into the shower….just staring at you and waiting…..

watch out……

Also, don’t forget about The Cloth Diaper Foundation and the Green Mountain Benefit Auction now through April 30th!  And the giveaway I’m having!

Play Dough from scratch…..

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Okay..now I know that probably every one out there has made their own playdough!  Well, I never have!  And I have been meaning to for a long time…so I came upon this recipe and thought no time like the present!

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River was very excited when I said we were going to make our own playdough..she immediately was ready to help!  The recipe called for a cup of salt!  I don’t think I ever used that much salt for anything.

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It was a very simple recipe and in no time we were stirring away.  Quickly, it became hard to stir….. though River didn’t want to give up…..

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Then River decided she wanted it to be pink…so we added some pink food gel.   The recipe said it was ready when it started pulling from the sides of the pot…so we knew it was ready to go!

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River got down to making pizza right away….

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Oh, I also added a tiny bit of mint extract so that it would smell nice.  She played with the play dough for about an hour.  When she was done playing….we packed it up in a ziploc bag for another day!  Here is the recipe:

Homemade Play Dough

2 cups             flour
1 cup                salt
1 tsp                 cream of tartar
2 tablespoons   oil
1 tsp                 food coloring (optional)
2 cups              water
-Mix ingredients in saucepan over medium heat while stirring constantly. It’s done when dough starts to leave sides of pan.
– Remove from saucepan and knead for a few minutes once it’s cool enough to touch.
-Store in a closed container.

Rolypig Composter….

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WARNING…THIS POST CONTAINS DISTURBING PHOTOS!!

Well, this weekend we did a little bit of Spring cleaning in the backyard and moved the Rolypig composter into his new home. River was very concerned that we hadn’t “fed” him yet.  Well, she finally got a chance to give him some “food”.   I have never composted before…so I am not sure what is best…..what you should compost and what you shouldn’t compost.  And I’m sure different composters work differently.  I read that in about 2-3 weeks the first chamber will be filled and we can begin the turning.  Then each week, we turn him one “flat”….and in 12 weeks..we will have some compost out his bottom.

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Alright..I told you this post contained disturbing photos!  And that is disturbing……I think shredded waste is ideal…but sometimes you just don’t feel like shredding your waste.

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River was sure there must be something in his bottom already…she just didn’t want to wait 12 weeks!  I will keep you posted on our adventures with the Rolypig!

Mini veggie pot pie……

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Keeping with the theory that if you get your child involved with the cooking, they will be more inclined to like the food….I had River make her own mini veggie pot pie.  We made the dough and she rolled it out herself with her own rolling pin.

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She picked out exactly which veggies she wanted..only potatoes and carrots..no asparagus, peppers, broccoli, or celery…

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Then she added the white sauce, which she loved and wanted to taste again and again…..

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Then she got to roll out more dough and put the top on her little pie….

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She was so proud of it when she was done….she couldn’t wait to cook it…..

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And then eat it…. and it was finally done and ready to eat…..

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And she wouldn’t even look at it..she refused to eat it….okay, she took one little bite and said…yuck!  And asked for a banana instead!

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Drawing….

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(Buzz and Woody by River February 22, 2010)

River seems to have reached a new level in her drawing skills.  She no longer just scribbles on the page.  She thinks about what she is going to draw and really plans it out…she loves to draw with a pencil.  She insists that she erases “her mistakes”..though I constantly tell her they aren’t mistakes and her picture looks wonderful.  After she is done drawing with the pencil, she wants to color everything in…

I wonder if part of her advances in drawing are due to having older siblings.  They sit down with her and very patiently show her “how to draw….”  They never criticize her drawings, she seems to have developed that herself.  It is always fascinating to watch a child’s development through their drawings.

When Quinn is doing his homework, he lets her sit at his desk and draw.  He is learning to be very patient with her.

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Thoughts on Barbies…..

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Yes, River has reached that age/stage.  She likes Barbies.  As a parent, I think we all dread this moment….but we know it will come.  Her favorite thing is to take off their clothes….they all seem to love to do that..not sure why…then I get to put the clothes back on..so she can rip them off again.  She was very excited that this Tinkerbell Barbie had earrings….”how stylish”..she told me….Yes, that Barbie is stylish….she’s got me beat when it comes to style….I don’t own as many high heels, my feet aren’t permanently arched..and I don’t have as many outfits as she does…even veterinarian Barbie has a nice mini skirt..that she always wears to care for the animals…..I am just not as stylish..that’s for sure…

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Beautiful Snow….

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Over the weekend we had lots and lots of gorgeous snow!  My children love to eat the snow…they would eat and eat and eat it all day…if I let them.

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It was almost too much snow…..River had a hard time walking through it…she stayed out for over 2 hours…she loved it so much.  I think she would have stayed out longer.

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The dogs weren’t too happy about it.  I tried to get them to play in the snow…but they didn’t want much to do with it..until I dug a path for them.

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Don’t forget to go on over to the Etsy Cloth Diaper Team blog….enter to win a custom made woolie……custom made by me!!!