Fun “Extras”
Summer is the time when I try and take advantage of completing some of those “extra” or fun projects that tend to get left out during the school year. If the same is true of you here are a few ideas you might want to check out.
First, check out one mom’s brilliant idea for making a Family Activity Binder. I can see where this would be a wonderful idea. A college in our area hosts an annual World Food Festival where they have lots of booths where you can taste food from different countries. It’s fun and educational and I forget when it is every year, since they don’t advertise heavily. A binder like this would keep me on track so I’d know when to watch for it.
Do you have a seamstress in your household or are you looking for inexpensive Christmas gifts to make? Check out this nifty oven hand mitt tutorial. I like them so much I’m going to make a few for myself, but they’d make a great beginning Home Ec project.
If the weather is just too hot outside and you have some bored kiddo’s on your hands, check out Canon’s papercraft projects. I have one child that will just LOVE these.This one is especially impressive.
Happy Summer!
Please Keep your Belly To Yourself!
Summer is here which means we are all in for months of flesh exposing, regardless of weight, age or even decency laws. So, I decided to repost the t-shirt I would like to wear…if I weren’t such a chicken! Yes, boldness is NOT one of my stronger traits.
Schools are for Fish!
Another wonderful illustration by Inflatable Studios…CLICK to see more of his cartoons!
Closet Make-Over
After all the work this house took, the closets were way down on the list for improvements. When we moved in, I just put our stuff in there and ignored the rest. For some reason, right before Christmas I got motivated to spruce up the master bedroom closet. It took me one day, some left over paint and peel and stick tiles. Cost aprox. $30
BEFORE
AFTER
Make Your Own Upside Down Tomato Planter
Upside down tomato planters are definitely a hot gardening item this year. The average price runs between $10-$20. In my opinion, this is just a plain rip off!! I mean, it’s basically a pot with a large hole in the bottom. So in the vein of frugal living, I decided to make my own, for just the cost of a hanging pot.
How to make your own upside tomato planter:
#1 Cut a large hole in the bottom. I did this with a power drill. The hole has to be large enough to “thread” the tomato plant through, but not too big as the dirt will spill out.
#2. Carefully wrap the leaves in saran wrap to get them bunched together. This will make threading easier. Next, pull a mesh barrier (with a hole in the middle) carefully over the leaves and down to the dirt. I used a piece of landscaping fabric. This will help keep the dirt from falling out of the hole.
Once your meshing is pulled over the plant, you are ready to carefully thread the entire plant through the hole. This takes some time and has to be done very delicately so you don’t tear any of the stems. The best way is to slowly wiggle and pull.
#3. At this point you will have to either hang the planter or have someone hold it (if you put it down, you will smash the tomato plant!). Fill the rest up with dirt. I decided to add flowers to the top, just for fun.
Here it is right after I finished. You can see the leaves are in shock, so they are a bit droopy. By the the next day, they perked right up! I will post some more pictures when it really gets going.
Saving money doing it myself really works for me! To see more Works for Me Wednesday tips visit We Are That Family.
Exercise Equations
Color Walk
Grocery Games
In the last few months, since sharing more of my “good deals” and bargain how-to’s on my blog, I’ve repeatedly been referred to as a “Coupon Queen”. I even had the fun of being the Special Feature for our local Stonecroft Ministries Christian Connection meeting this month. Not only that, my business partners are now converts! You can see Jennie “doin’ the deals” on her blog. Marillee was there, but hiding out, as usual. How fun is that!!??
These comments really opened my eyes to the necessity of involving my children in what I’m doing in the grocery store and why. What a great learning opportunity! Grocery Cart Math was the very first non-Trigger Memory System product we offered and is still one of my very favorites. This workbook is intended to come along with your child on a grocery trip as they answer the questions.
But even without the workbook, our children can learn a great deal by helping with shopping. They can estimate how much you saved with coupons or sales and compare actual totals. They can determine actual coupon/sale savings then compare with the register tape to see if they got it right (keep the bottom covered until they are done calculating). Kids can learn how to check the price per unit to find the best bargains and what is the best coupon deal. (Often, you’ll save more using a coupon on the smallest product rather than a larger version) Children can help plan a holiday meal, staying within a specific budget. Or, perhaps they can develop a couple of menu plans, then find the cost of the food to see which is most expensive.
As you include your children in these types of activities, you not only increase their math and analysis skills, you prepare them for life in the future.
Hands-On Math Games
If math drills are getting a bit boring consider these tricks.
- Use a permanent marker to make sections on a beachball. Call out a number and toss the ball to your child. Have him look at the number his right thumb is touching when he catches the ball. He must answer the equation using the number you said and the number his thumb landed on. For example, if you are practicing addition and say “6″ as you toss the ball, and your child catches the ball with his thumb on “4″, he would give the answer for “6 + 4″.
- Draw a grid onto the sidewalk or driveway. Write numbers vertically and horizontally along the grid. Have your child toss two beanbags and solve the problem for the numbers the bags land on.
Both methods can be easily adapted to different studies. Learn the alphabet, practice state capitals, name musical notes and more. Be creative and have fun!
WFMW: Clean N’ Flips
Now, since our company created and published Clean N’ Flips, I realize this post could be considered a “plug”. However, our Zone Cleaning Flip was created out of necessity and truly is a great cleaning tip. Jennie was taking care of Marillee’s kids for a week (eight children, total) and created a plan to help stave off the chaos. The result was a system that the kids had fun with and left the house in better shape than it was before the added kiddos! By dividing the house into “zones” and assigning specific daily tasks, the kids were able to whip the place into shape in short order, leaving Jennie free to plan fun projects. (Or put them to work remodeling!) lol
Training the kids and making it easy for the to help work for me! To see more Works for Me Wednesday tips visit We Are That Family.
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