Kids Crafts- Aquarium Diorama

Another glorious spring Day here in New Mexico. With 6 kids with me today I had to be prepared. I took the time over the past week to make a new Pinterest board of things that would be fun and age appropriate to do this summer. The board is accurately named 'Summer2014'. One of the first things I saw (that I had all materials on hand) was this Aquarium Diorama.

Amazingly, I even had the foam sea stickers! I bought a package of them from amazon that was three times the size I expected. I have enough of these to last 5 more projects! 

I skipped the sand and 2nd color of paint. Too much for these little guys and my patience. ;) 

The painting of the plates was quite time consuming for these kids and gave me lots of time to get a snack ready and feed  the babies. 

I used Dixie plates and wished I had used regular cheep paper plates. The paint was runny on the waxy surface. I added some flour to it to thicken it up.

The kids had a lot of fun doing these and ran out of room for all the fish they wanted. We used tape instead of staples and Saran Wrap for the window 'glass'. 

This is one of the better projects Ive come across for 2 to 4 year olds. They were able to do mostly all of the steps themselves with minimal assistance. They were talking about ocean life and naming all the fish and asking questions about each one. 

And best of all, they were super excited to show their loved ones and take them home to keep enjoying. 

Definitely a success. 

(The middle plate is the 1 year olds) 

Smoothie Recipe

I've had a couple people ask me for some smoothie recipes, since I drink them daily and brag about how awesome they are. ;)

I really only make two variations. One is a copy cat of Keva Juices Ragin' Bull. Which they have changed and is now called ragin' rocker, since they switched to rock star energy drink.

Anyway, the Ragin' Bull is my favorite. If done just right, it tastes like sweet tarts. Measurements are not exact. I really just eye it. It also usually makes enough for two smoothies and are about 300 calories. 

Start with a blender.

 Add:

8 oz of sugar free red bull 

8 oz of guava juice

Hand full of frozen peaches

Hand full of large frozen strawberries

Blend!

If your having trouble blending add water or more juice. 

That's it! Sometimes I'll add a scoop of vanilla flavored whey protein, it no longer tastes like a sweet tart, but is still yummy and will keep you fuller longer. 

My second favorite smoothie has stuff I almost always have on hand. (I don't always stock red bull or guava juice) 

Easy peasy.

I use some kind of Naked brand juice. I switch up the brands periodically, but usually green machine, mango or berry. 

Juice 8 to 12 oz

Water 4 to 8 oz

Hand full or two of baby spinach

Hand full of frozen strawberries

Hand full of frozen blueberries

5 hour energy (optional) (I use kirklands brand)

The 5 hour energy gets me motivated. (I don't drink coffee) and I normally use it before workouts or an expected long or strenuous day. 

I also LOVE putting spinach in my smoothies. I will usually make the smoothie first, give some to the kids, then blend again with the 5 hour energy. It's a great way to hide the greens in their food. And since I discovered you can dehydrate spinach, I don't have to worry about having it fresh on hand, Or if its slightly slimy :/. 

Mmmmmmmmm.................

You can use fresh fruit if you like, but you'll need to add ice to get the frozen consistency. You can also add plain yogurt for added nutrition. I'm not a big fan of dairy smoothies so we don't do this often. 

Unsuspecting children, drinking delicious spinach smoothie. Bwa ha ha ha!!

I love smoothies! 

I hope this helps you start your own smoothie experimentation. The possibilities are truly endless. And if you have a hard time being creative, just grab a menu from your favorite local smoothie shop and experiment with their ingredients and your measurements. 

Happy blending! 

Last minute St Patties Day Activities

I'm not much of a planner when it comes to some things.

Crafting activities is one of them.

I get an idea and wing it. 

So, today is St Patricks Day. I did not prepare anything fun for the kids. I did not wear green. I did not research the history to explain to them. I did not really care. Then, I felt guilty. 

I quickly skimmed Pinterest for visual ideas and saw this:

 

Found Here

Perfect. Easy, and I had all the materials. I did not venture into the details, I usually don't. I use Pinterest for visual ideas and then wing it. 

I shredded some construction paper and looked for any green decorations I had on hand. Amazingly and to my surprise I didn't have (or couldn't find) my shamrock stickers. So, green frogs and green foam was all I had. Add markers and glitter, and that's really all I need. 

It kept the kids entertained for a good amount of time and they had a lot of fun. 

'Binoculars for spotting leprechauns! Awesome! ........what are leprechauns?' 

Ah yes, what are leprechauns.......hmmmm. 

A quick google search and a brief explanation is all I gave them. If I was being perfectly honest, I'd tell them it's a holiday to punish your liver like the stereotypical Irishman does. But I won't.

I then made glorious plans to bake green sugar cookies, but, after nap I was in no mood for a big mess. Soooooo I whipped up the easiest St. Patrick's Day snack ever. I pulled out the individual store bought rice crispy treats and painted them (water and food coloring) green, added green sprinkles and BAM! Best mom ever. ;) 

Ha ha yeah right. But it was satisfying enough for me, and the kids had fun. At least I did SOMETHING. 

The water made the tops a wee bit soggy.  The kids did not notice, at all. And the sprinkles almost made up for it. :)

Well, that's it for St Patricks Day here. Thanks, Pinterest, for once again saving this mom's ass. ;)

Yikes!!

My son bit his tongue. Hard!!!

Uggghhhh the pictures just don't even do it justice. It's gruesome! The poor boy! 

He fell off the pla climber outside. 

There is flappy chunk of skin hanging off. Eeeweww. I could never have been a nurse. Lol

Potty Training Chart

The little man is FINALLY showing signs of being ready to potty train. Am I ever ready for it! We've been on two solid days of potty training with one accident each day. They both happened shortly after working hours where I lose track of the time. He tinkled in the kitchen yesterday and today immediately After sitting on the potty he went into the other room and pooped his pants! Argh! As soon as I cleaned him up and ran a bath, I went to look of there were any 'leftovers' in the room he chose and the damn puppy peed right in front of me! Some days I could just dig a hole and crawl inside. Some days I wish I was just at the beach.

Any-who, I couldn't find a potty training chart that I like enough. They all were either two short or not interesting or exciting enough. So naturally, I made one. Poster board, foam backing, sharpies and stickers.

The goal is for Z to fill each puff of smoke with a sticker, working his way to each planet in our solar system starting from the sun. He gets one sticker for pee and 2 for poop. (And only one per hour, to keep from multiple trips to get more rewards, tricky buggar will do that!)

 Each planet has a reward. Mars = a Sucker, Venus = a trip to the park, Earth = a trip to the zoo. 

 He earned his sucker in one day so as to experience the reward and catch on to the goal. I think it's going to work out well. :)