Works For Me Wednesday

Up Close and Personal

July 21, 2009

in God's handiwork,Works For Me Wednesday,zoo

Last week we took the kids to the local zoo. We have tried to go once a year for the past several years. We go in part b/c we want to give the kids a chance to see the exotic animals up close. It’s so fun to watch their reactions. But, I’ll be honest, we also go b/c I love to see the animals up close! It is amazing and awe inspiring and I don’t think I could ever tire of it! (And I am not even an animal person).

Three preschool kids at the zoo in Maryland in the heat of summer. Why, you might ask? Well, that I’ve already answered that, it’s fun. How? We have a strategy that has worked really well for for us. We don’t attempt to see it all. We don’t make it a day long affair. We pick the few select animals we want to see, we take our time and enjoy them, and we leave happy. I don’t try to “get my money’s worth” and see every single animal in the zoo. I feel I get more than my money’s worth by enjoying the select ones we do see. One year I’d like to get a zoo membership and try to go back often and gradually see them all. The past two years we’ve been pretty fascinated by the same select few.

The polar bears.

The giraffe

The elephant

And the leopard.

This year, we had a few exciting moments as we got to feed the giraffe, watch the elephants drink water from their trunk, and watch and listen to the leopard pace and growl. Because we saw only a few we spent a good deal of time observing them. We saw more than just these 4 animals, but these were by far the highlight for the circus crew.

Follow the links for more fun with pictures (some more wordy and some less). And for more helpful tips, visit here.

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Do You Believe in Magic?

March 17, 2009

in Homemaker,Works For Me Wednesday

I seriously wonder what moms did before the internet. Where did you go when you were looking for that cookie recipe you can’t find in your recipe box, or to check for tips on how to bring your child’s fever down, or to seek help tips for crayon removal?

A few weeks ago when I discovered this

after my daughter’s naptime, I left a face book status that I was wondering how to get marker off of a baby doll face and within the hour I had 15 helpful tips.

But, it turned out this lovely mess was crayon and not marker. (when I asked her why she wrote on her doll with crayon her response was, “Because the crayon was there.” Niiiice!)

Have no fear, google is here!

Turns out you can get crayon off of plastic by using baby oil.

Check out the results.

A few weeks later I found this little note on the wall when I was preparing the guest room for company. I would have assumed it was my daughter again, because I KNOW my son knows better than to write on the wall.

Thankfully, he preserved his sister from being falsely accused by leaving his name in our baseboard next to this message. I thought it looked like a cry for help. As in “(insert son’s name here) hello please help”

However, during my great inquisition I learned that he actually wrote his name (not featured here) followed by bed.

Clearly, we need to work on both obedience and spelling here at the circus.

So, a quick note in face book and I learned that Mr. Clean Magic Eraser does the trick for crayon on wall. And indeed it did!

Google and Face book work for me when looking for some handy hints for the creations my children leave for me. Also, Magic Eraser and Baby Oil are new staples here at the circus.

For more helpful tips, visit THAT family for Works for Me Wednesday.

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How to Make Good Cookies Even Better

February 3, 2009

in recipes,Works For Me Wednesday

Home made chocolate chip cookies are my favorite! I am partial to the recipe my mom got years ago.

Perhaps you’ve seen the recipe as well. The story goes someone asked for Mrs. Fields cookie recipe and was told it cost two fifty. Upon receiving the recipe, she learned it cost two hundred and fifty dollars rather than two dollars and fifty cents. Outraged, she went on to share this recipe with the world to get back at them for charging so much.

I gotta confess until a month ago, I believed this little story. Thought I was going around with Mrs Fields very own cookie recipe. I’d see her store at the mall and think, “Why bother paying for the cookies when I could go home and make the exact same ones and even get to eat the dough?”

Yes, I am that gullible.

(I was the girl in high school who believed the line that gullible wasn’t in the dictionary too).

Last month I was craving me some cookies and couldn’t find my “secret” recipe anywhere. I thought I’d check online since you can pretty much find any recipe you want online. And that is when I read this nice little anecdote about how that was an urban legend, documented on snopes.com.

What a disappointment!

Though I did track down my most favorite recipe and in the process gleaned three tips for making your cookies taste even better.

I tried them and the results were amazing.

These cookies were already a favorite staple here at the circus and yet when I made this batch, my husband noticed right away and asked what I did differently.

The first trick is to melt your butter before creaming it together to make your cookie dough. It changes the consistency of the cookie and gives you a much softer, chewier cookie.
The second trick mentioned was to double the amount of vanilla called for in the recipe. I did this as well, and I noticed a difference in taste. It seemed to enhance the flavor if you will.
The third trick was to add a tablespoon of milk to the dough at the last step when you are stirring it all together. Again this is to make a softer, chewier cookie.

I would assume you could adapt these tips to your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, or you can try the not so secret recipe I’ve been enjoying for years!

These tips worked for me. Visit Rocks in My Dryer for more great tips.

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I Never Have to Do Dishes Again

January 21, 2009

in Works For Me Wednesday

I recently discovered a way to entertain and delight my children, while also getting some help in the kitchen.

I let them wash dishes in the sink by hand.

I don’t give them anything fragile. But at almost 3 and almost 5, they are quite capable of scrubbing pots and pans or large bowls…things I can’t squeeze into the dishwasher.

They beg me for the opportunity and it keeps them content for up an hour. I figure I gotta take advantage of this while I can…having my kids beg for the chance to do the dishes is not something I anticipate lasting forever.

I’ve learned a few tricks to keep this successful.

One child is on dish duty at a time. (2 preschoolers at the sink is recipe for trouble).
Be prepared to go through more than your usual amount of soap. Seems the kids think you need a LOT of soap to clean those pots.
I limit them to two or three dishes. I don’t want them to be overwhelmed or to get bored…bored kids armed with the spray house is another hazard.
Remove any important papers at least 3 feet away from the sink…splashing is par for the course.
Sometimes you gotta spot check them b/c even though they scrub that pot for 30 minutes, they can still miss quite a few spots. (I typically sit them on the counter to dry and to a quick touch up later when they aren’t around) They are still getting most of the hard work out of the way with all that soaking.

My son told me last week, “Mom, you never have to do dishes again.” …If I could just get that in writing.

Check out Rocks in My Dryer for more helpful hints.

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O Come Let Us Adore Him

January 7, 2009

in holidays,Homemaker,Works For Me Wednesday

I don’t remember what magazine or book I read it from, but a few years ago I found an idea for having a wise man celebration. For some reason I recall it being on January 6th. And I decided it was a good idea. But that year my entire family got struck with the stomach virus, so we skipped it. But last year and this year we celebrated, thus making it a tradition at our house.

We make stir fry or Chinese food (because the wise men came from the East) for dinner and we bake star shaped sugar cookies for dessert. We wear crowns, like the kings and we watch the wise man movie (The First Noel).

Since we are a young family, in many ways we are still shaping our traditions. Since our first year of marriage we have hung a Jesus stocking. In it Scott and I write a note about what we want to give to Jesus that year. This year we decided to combine the Jesus stocking with Wiseman day. We discussed as a family what we could like to do together as a gift for Jesus and the kids will draw a representative picture to put into the stocking.

I like celebrating Wiseman Day because it provides another opportunity to tell and retell the Christmas story and to keep our focus on the real meaning of the season. Typically the tree is down and the decorations are away by the 6th and it is nice to take some time to continue to dwell on Christ’s birth, after the “holiday season” is past.

Wiseman Day works for me and my family as it provides a fun family night with a focus on our Lord and on what we can give to Him as we worship Him. To find more great ideas and helpful tips, visit Rocks in My Dryer.

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It’s Cookie Baking Time!!

December 16, 2008

in Circus Shots,Motherhood,Works For Me Wednesday

After years of research in my test kitchen, I have found that Krusteaz sugar cookie mix tastes better than any of the “from scratch sugar cookies” I have made.

And not only do they taste good, but literally, you pour the mix, add water, and stir!!

This is crucial for me, because with my three preschoolers, Mommy needs to spend her time managing the flour and cutting out of the cookies, not measuring and mixing.

I have found that what works for me in these busy holiday days with my circus crew, is to prioritize and focus my energy on what really matters most to us. Some times that means I make the apple pie from scratch because that is our favorite. Other times we use the box mix, because our favorite part is playing with the dough and cutting out the cookies.