My son is finally old enough to appreciate dying Easter eggs. We only dyed 10 eggs (2 of the doze cracked while boiling, 1 cracked when my daughter dropped it!) but we had fun. I even found Christian stickers to apply when they dried! My son did not quite understand why we had to wait for the Easter Bunny- he asked three or four times today if it was Christmas Eve. We did explain that Easter is not about the Easter Bunny, but about Jesus dying and coming back. My son asked if he got all better? Did he go to the doctor? Did he see his Daddy? Great questions to explain the real meaning, even though the Easter Eggs are fun.

Who needs toys?!

Today, we got home from the store and had bought a large package of toilet paper. We were busy getting ready to die eggs and putting together the $10.90 Radio Flyer rocking house I got at Toys R Us (such a deal!) and my daughter had gone outside to play. Instead of playing with the toys we actually have purchased to play with, she took the toilet paper outside to play with. It doesn't matter what you buy, they will always like the box better- right?

Do you wear the right bra?

So many of us do not wear the right bra and so many of us need to. I was watching Oprah one time with the bra specialist on the show and she was explaining how many women try to fit themselves into the standard A,B,C fit of bras when they could be a J,H, or DDDD! I never heard of such sizes! So we all need to remeasure! With pregnancy, weight gain, weight loss, age, and gravity, it is likely you are not the size you were in high school. This site, Bare Necessities, has a great explanation of how to measure yourself for a bra and tells you all about the bra types (and even panty types of those interested). (Look at the very bottom that says Fit Tips). I think it even has men's underwear! They even have Spanx bras and hosiery!. And of course, my favorite, online shopping from home!
Spring Savings - Promotions and Specials at BareNecessities.com
Spanx Bra-llelujah Bra

The cuteset store!

I have found the cutest store for personalized gifts for babies and children as well as personalized room decor and other cute things. It is called My Bambino. I do a lot of internet shopping and have never found such a variety of personalized gifts to give to children of all ages. You have got to check this one out!

Send Out Cards

I am involved in a few different companies that are direct sales, network marketing, multilevel marketing. I will tell you a little about some of them over the next few days. The first one is one of the greatest and most beneficial for moms. Send Out Cards allows you to send a REAL greeting card right from your computer. It is not an e-card, a real card that you add your personal information and greeting to, and is mailed with a real stamp. You enter your friends and family's names, addresses, birthdays, and anniversaries, and it even send a reminder email to you to send the card. The cards are great quality and at the highest price will cost you less that $1.50 with postage. If you want to get fancy, you can add your own pictures to the inside of the card, or upgrade to make your pictures the face of the card. If you want to give it a try, contact me and I will set you up with two free cards. FREE as in your send them for free- I know you will love it and want to set up your own account. And, to send cards, there are no sign up fees or monthly requirements. If you want to do it as a business, I can give you more information. It may not be for you, but to work from your computer sending positive, warm thoughts to friends and family... there is nothing better!

Instant Pancake Mix

We love pancakes in our house but I hate buying the pre-made stuff. I found this recipe for instant pancake mix from Alton Brown on The Food Network. You mix it up and store it in the fridge, just like the pre-made. It taste great and is easy to do. I don't usually have buttermilk, so I use milk, but it does taste better with buttermilk.

A neat craft idea from my friend Lisa.

My friend Lisa sent this to me today...
The homemade chalk worked today! If you are interested in doing this with your kids......


Take a plastic easter egg and coat the inside with vaseline. I also tried Pam and it did not separate as easily.

Mix about two parts plaster of paris to 1 part water. Kids can do this in a plastic cup with a plastic spoon. Otherwise use something disposable - trust me you want to throw it all away in the end. I bought a bowl and wooden spoon at the habitat place for 75 cents! To color the mix add a few tablespoons of paint. Online it says tempera paint. I used acrylic and it worked fine. You get a pastel color. Mix it all up and then start filling both sides of the eggs. Pack it in so there are no air bubbles. put the two halves together. Tap it a bit to make it stick together and let it sit for they say 24 hours. I opened my first one in about 8 hours and it did come out. After you get it out it needs to sit for awhile to dry some more. It still feels damp. You can mix colors - like one half yellow one half green. A chemical reaction happens so let your kids feel the eggs after a little while they will be very warm. DOon't pour any of this down the drain it will harden and clog your pipes.


For regular chalk shapes they say online to: put duct tape on the end of a toilet paper roll. Line the inside with a piece of wax paper and fill it.

I found you either have to twist the plastic egg off or tap it with a knife and the plastic egg will crack then you can get it off.

Eli's class had fun doing this. Slightly messy but good fun - I suggest filling outside in the yard :) We did it at the school patio tables with some banner paper down. Then just hose off your kids!

If your really into this one website has you crush eggshells for the powder! I can't imagine how many eggs you'd have to crush to do this!!!

Love
Lisa

For more egg activities visit ChildFun Family

A one year anniversary!

Yesterday was a very special day. It was the one year anniversary of my husband's kidney transplant. And for those that don't know me, my mom gave my husband a kidney! He has had a wonderful year without any problems or complications. He and my mom recovered well, although he was out and about in a week and she took a few more weeks to feel somewhat normal. The whole story is amazing, with the most amazing being that Rick and I were a blind date, my mom could not stand him at first, but grew to love him. She was the first to get tested for compatibility and matched. She was 54 when she donated. Rick has polycystic kidney disease which make the kidneys grow with cyst that take over the kidney function. He had his transplant at Lifelink in Tampa, Florida. He continues to have doctor's visits and blood drawn, but other than that, you would never know- unless you knew him before and he looks so much better now! If you are ever confronted with a relative or friend in need of a kidney transplant, don't let fear stop you from being tested. A person needing a kidney transplant can wait for years. Check her for the Living Donor FAQ. As of today at 9:55 pm, there are over 95,816 people waiting for transplants. You also find info on being a donor at http://organdonor.gov/.
And, by the way, PKD is a genetic condition and fairly common. My kids could both have, and I pray that they don't. But I will be ready to hand over a kidney if the time comes!

Little Ms. Sunshine

Rick and I watched Little Ms. Sunshine last night. Rick rented it for me over the weekend when I was sick, but as usual, I did not get to watch it until 2 days later! Anyway, Rick was in the kitchen and not going to watch it. He was going to take his James Bond into the bedroom to watch, but this movie was so funny he watched the whole thing. It tells the story of a family with some issues and their journey to take the daughter to a beauty pageant she got into by default. The journey is humorous, but the pageant is hilarious! The whole movie is worth watching, but the end is great. It is so typical about the little girl pageants for those of us that are not in that circuit. And this was a normal little girl looking normal. I highly recommend if you get some time to rent a movie. I know it won some award and I can see why!

I made bread!

I love to cook, but I have only made bread a few times. I make some great rolls from scratch at Thanksgiving (I don't know why I don't do it more often!) and I make pizza dough occasionally. I have been so concerned with the high fructose corn syrup you find in ALMOST every loaf of bread in the store that I have been telling everyone to check what you are eating. Someone once told me they heard a doctor say that our bodies know what to do with sugar because it has been around forever, but high fructose corn syrup is new and probably what is causing obesity. It is in everything. So my friend Kristen told me she made bread the other day and it was not too hard. She even made it without a bread machine. And then my niece Gabriella had to make bread for a 4th grade school project, and hers came out good too. So I decided, why not? I found this cookbook that had been my grandmother's called The New York Times Natural Foods Cookbook (this particular copy was copywrited 3 years before I was born!. In it our tons of bread recipes. I choose crusty white bread. You did not even kneed it! It turned out pretty good, I even impressed my mom! :)

5 cups unbleached flour
1 tsp sea salt
1 package dry active yeast
1 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup olive oil
2/3 cup milk plus 1 tablespoon
1 egg, lightly beaten

Mix the flour and the salt together. In a separate bowl, mix the lukewarm water and the yeast and dissolve the yeast. Add 2/3 cup milk and the oil and stir well.(**I learned one time do not make the water too hot, it kills the yeast!). Combine with the flour mixture. Mix it vigorously until combined. Place in an oiled bowl. Cover and let it rise double. (This takes about 1 1/2 hours). Punch it down and divide it into two halves. Roll each to 1/2 inch thick and then roll into a jelly roll. Leave both on a oiled cookie sheet and let it rise double again (this takes about 30 minutes). Mix beaten egg and 1 tablespoon of milk and brush over the top of the bread. Put a pan of hot water into the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cook at 400 degrees for 15 minutes then lower to 350 degrees for 15 minutes until browned.

When you make it, you can control what is in it! I challenge you t make some bread soon!

Another income stream!

I am on a work at home mom forum called Mommy's Helper Community. It is a very friendly forum with real posts and not all ads (my pet peeve). I am so interested in affiliate marketing and how to make money with internet sites and websites, without having to spend a lot of time. Today I found on that forum a company called Zilo. Pretty much is a referral site for your favorite products. You set up your free store by filling it with things you like or find interesting, like my store, and then get paid when people shop from you. You promote on forums and to your contact group of friends and family. The greatest thing is you can set up your store with a referral from me and I get a commission on your store as well (plus anyone that sets up a store from your referral), forever! Here is the link if you want to start your own store- http://www.zlio.com/?r=51692.

With only 51692 stores, you have pretty good odds! Most products I have seen so far are from Amazon. It is such a neat idea!

The second personalized store I found was on online "create your own shirt" store. Our Smart Mom Store sells shirts with our logo as well as shirts for other clubs and groups. You make the shirts, set your commission and sell them. There are a lot on our site that we buy ourselves, so we did not even add commissions. I got three in the mail a week after I ordered them, and they are wonderful! This is so much easier than ordering them from a shop, paying a set up fee, and then having to order 12 or more identical shirts. I was able to order three shirts, three sizes, and two different logos and I paid $44, with shipping. There is a link on the store site to make your own store. It is free. And addictive!

So many ways to create that second or third stream of income! I cannot believe all that I have missed! My mind is opening to the amazing possibilities of different ways to provide for my family and stay home with my kids. As I find more affiliates, I will post them too!

I hate being sick!

And three days later... what an end to my husband's spring break! We had a wonderful night out Wednesday evening, thanks to my sister. We got to go to dinner and a movie without the kids! My sister actually kept my son all day and we dropped Sophie off later in the evening. Then we came home to two wide awake kids that were up until midnight! AHHHH! I woke up the next morning thinking I had eaten too much or ate too much FRIED food, but it did not go away. Thank goodness for me my husband was home so I did not have to be a mom and be sick. I stayed in bed all day Thursday and most of Friday, thinking I was better, ate dinner. Felt worse last night and finally feel a little better today after a menu of crackers and rice! So no Disney, no fun trips. It is so bad for my husband since he spent the last three days of his days off from work taking care of me and the kids! There is always summer break... plus this weekend we are going to a race at the beach and a day at Disney, so we are getting a mini vacation. There is some hope!

Another baby... I got you thinking!

Rick and I were talking about many different things while we were driving home from the grocery store. One of our sticky points is that I think it is possible that I MAY want another child, and he thinks we are done. So in a conversation on finances, I said that IF we had another child, we could not keep my Vibe because three won't fit across the back seat. And he said, "that is why we don't need another baby." And my son said from the back seat, "But I want to keep this one!" and he pointed to my daughter! :) He said "no, no, we are keeping this one!"
Funny how they "hear" what we are saying. Who knows what goes through their minds!

Whoops- the babysitter showed up!

My mom and I decided we would start working out in the mornings, two days a week. So I asked a girl from church if she would start coming over so we can go exercise at our church fitness center. I remembered yesterday that my mom was going to be gone this week, so I called the babysitter to leave a message to not come. Well the answering machine messed up and I could not leave a message. So this morning at 10:00am, as I sit in my pajamas, she shows up! I paid her for her time and told her next week! Is that what you call "mommy brain"?

The Day of a Mom

As a mom, we all have things that happen that just seem crazy, or that our kids are crazy, or that WE are crazy. And I know every mom has a story... this blog is dedicated to the crazy stories that happen in a day of a mom, that cannot be explained in any other way, but if you are a mom, you will understand!

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