My Son's Puppy Dog Birthday Cake

This is a picture of the cake I made for my oldest son on his 5th. birthday last year.He wanted his cake to look like his stuffed dog (on the right), so I had to get creative.

Here are a few thing I do to make it easier when baking theme cakes:

*Use a box mix (I used to do from scratch, but went back to a mix to save on time)
*For this cake, I baked the batter in a couple pans (bread sized, I believe), then ended up cutting the cake up and sticking it back togerther with frosting.
*Before frosting the cake, I stick it in the freezer for a couple hours. This makes it easier to cut up without having crumbs get everywhere.
*I buy my frosting from the bakery at a grocery store. I buy the buttercream type and am able to get it in very vidid colors.
*I also have some of the Wilton colorings on hand (available at cake stores & in the craft section of Wal-mart) if I need to alter a color a bit.
*Before doing the outer color of frosting on my cakes, I do a base coat over the entire thing. This helps the outer color to go on smoother and not have any crumbs showing.

The Pee Pee Game

My 2 year old daughter has been potty trained since then end of last Summer. Recently, she started having accidents again. She refused to sit on the potty half the time and would throw a fit, (you could say she's a little strong willed). Finally, I decided enough was enough. She's smart and has had this potty thing down- there's no reason she can't sit on the potty and keep her panties dry. I decided I needed to stop being lazy and start taking her to the potty more often, and that I would have to get more creative.

So, we started playing the Pee Pee game. I would set my daughter on the potty and she'd go into her tantrum. Instead of getting upset, though, I asked her if she wanted to play a game, the Pee Pee game. She quieted down, so I said, "whoever hears the pee pees first gets to say, "I HEAR THE PEE PEES!" ". She started to go a minute later and I shouted "I HEAR THE PEE PEES!". She thought this was pretty funny.

That was a week or two ago. Since then, my 4 year old has gotten into the act. If my daughter is on the potty and my son hears her going from the other room, he trys to shout the winning words before anyone else. My daughter than shouts it out too. She thinks this is great fun and will ask to play the game now.

I've decided that with a strong-willed child and potty training, sometimes you need to get creative rather than upset. Today it's the Pee Pee Game, tommorow it might be something totally different. Whatever works, because it is very nice not having her in diapers anymore!

2 Hours Leading Up to a Scheduled C-Section- What to Expect

Someone recently asked why you are supposed to be at the hospital 2 hours before a repeat c-section and wondered what goes on during that time. This is a great question! I wanted to share my response on here in case someone reading this blog is anticipating a scheduled c-section. I will describe what happens during those 2 hours as they happened at the hospital I delivered at, so there may be some variances depending on what type of hospital you go with.

First they check you in and take you to your room. If there's any more paperwork you need to fill out, you'll do it then. The nurse will lay out your gown, and socks and ask you to change. You'll change into it and go back to your bed and maybe catch some TV while you wait for the nurse to come back.

When she comes back, she'll put the wrist band on you and your husband that will match the baby, then she'll put an additional one or two on you. She'll start the monitoring on you- contractions & heartbeat, draw some blood, and get the IV going. If they need to shave around where the incision goes, then it would probably be somewhere around this time.

They'll monitor you like this for a while. After an hour of being there or maybe more, the nurse comes back in with some nasty bitter stuff to drink- anti-nausea stuff. The anesthesiologist and your O.B. will both come back and talk with you and see if you have any last minute concerns. You may get a chance to talk with your baby's nurse (the one who will be responsible for getting him cleaned up, weighed...). This is a good time to remind them what you would like in regards to getting to hold the baby, keeping the baby with you, breastfeeding, ect. After talking with the docs., it's getting real close.

Your nurse will come back in and have you put on a hat and ask your husband to go and change into scrubs and a hat.

Then they will have you walk to the O.R., there they will start the spinal (after this is started, they'll allow your husband back in) & catheter, and then it's been about 2 hours! Time for the baby to come out!

*You'll probably find a scheduled c-section to be SO much more layed back than with an emergency c-section. Everyone is calm, relaxed, and not very stressed. You actually WALK into the O.R., (or at least are given the choice t0) instead of being rushed in on a hospital bed. Things are nice and smooth and no one is in too terribly of a hurry. This is nice not only because it helps calm fears a little (vs. when people are running around nuts because something is wrong), but it's also nice because it gives you a chance to go over any last minute concerns or requests regarding the birth and the baby.

Knowing for weeks that you going to have surgery can be scary, but do know that repeat c-sections go so much smoother than emergency ones!

How We Afford Homeschooling

Figuring out how we were going to afford curriculum was the biggest concern of mine when we first made the decision to homeschool. Here's what we came up with to make it work:

Each month we have a set ammount from my husband's paycheck go into each of the older 3 children's savings. We use this money to make school purchases that come up throughout the year. For our bigger spending, though, we set aside a portion of our tax return to use.

Another thing that helped us afford homeschooling is attend the homeschool conference in our area. I had requested a catalog from Rainbow Resource ahead of time and had a list of what I wanted to buy from them. While at the conference, I stopped by their booth and found many of the items I wanted to buy from them already on sale! What they didn't have in their booth, I was able to order from them and receive free shipping! Many other vendors such as Critical Thinking Co. and Alpha Omega had 20% off. This meant everything I had wanted to buy was cheaper than I had planned on! It was pretty exciting.

More than anything, though, we've been able to homeschool by God's grace. We truly believe that this is God's plan for our children and because of that, we believe that He will provide the resources to carry out His plan. Last year, we were just barely scraping by. Living a life without creating debt, yet sometimes very stressed over not being able to buy groceries for another week. Even so, God provided enough for us to purchase books we needed for homeschooling.

If you feel the call to homeschool and are unsure how you will afford it, try not to worry. Pray a ton, get educated on what's out there for curriculum and what will work best for your kids, and then get thrifty on finding ways to save up. Setting aside $10 a paycheck might be less overwhelming than taking out $270 all at once. Save up little by little and you'll get there. If you don't have extra money to save, then maybe it means cleaning out your house once a year and having a big garage sale. Or, maybe like us, you can set aside part of your tax return each year to put towards school.

I know homeschooling can be expensive, but the fruit of it is SO rewarding. I am already seeing the benefits of it in my own children, and we only "officially" started a year and a half ago!

Are you a homeschooling parent with a thrifty idea on how to afford curriculum? I'd love to hear it!

Storing and Washing Cloth Diapers

I'm going to start posting some basic "How-to Cloth Diaper" articles from time to time. To begin, I'd like to talk about storing dirty cloth diapers and how to get them clean. Getting them clean is super easy! Here's what I do:

I use a trashcan with a flip-top lid to store the diapers.
I put a Wahmies Diaper Pail Liner in the pail to store my diapers in. Those work great because you can just pick it up like you would with a trash bag, only you can throw it right into your washer and wash along with your diapers. It's very easy! Plus, they come in tons of cool colors. I recommend making sure you buy 2. I only have one (in African Violet), and greatly could use a second as the diapers pile up elsewhere while I'm waiting for my liner to get clean again.

Once my liner is in place, I put the lid on and it's ready to go! Once the pail is full, or it's been 3 days (whichever comes first), I pick up the liner full of diapers and dump both the liner and the diapers into the washing machine.
First I do a rinse on Cold with the water level set on high
Then, Wash on Hot using 1/4 the ammount of the recommended usage or Tide
Next, I do a Hot rinse. Sometimes I will add in 3-4 drops of lavendar essential oil to the rinse.
If the diapers have any smell to them after that last rinse, then I will do a second rinse to get them extra clean.
After the wash, I pull out the covers and set them aside, and throw everything else (including the liner) into the dryer. Then I hang dry my covers over the shower rod. *I used to use a clothesline and hopefully will again soon. It's fun drying them outside, plus the UV rays help get them extra sanitized and stain-free!

That's all there is to getting those nasty soiled diapers smelling totally clean!

Look at This Pantry!

We went out looking at houses the other day and found this really cool model home.

Take a look at the skinny door in the middle of this kitchen.

Looks like a tiny door to a pantry, right? Boy were we suprised when we opened the door and found a small room! When you first walk in, there is a space to the left to store your broom, mop, and vaccume. Then you walk into the actual room part and there are shelves lining the room both on the left and straight ahead.

It was so cool! We open this door and there's this room inside the cabinets! I'd love to have

something like this in my kitchen!

Meal Planning- HELP!!!

Since putting our house on the market, we've been living a diet mostly of pizza, pasta, fish sticks, and PB & J. I am SO sick of eating like this. I don't even look forward to meal time anymore because I'm tired of eating the same thing every day!

I need some help. I would like to make a meal plan for the next 2-4 weeks. I am not interested in using a meal list off the internet. Instead, I would like to come up with some kind of meal organizing chart that allows me to plan out a list of available meals and cross them out as they're used. I'd also like to come up with a master list of ingredients necessary for the meal plan, so I know how much to shop for and what's available in the pantry.

Have any of you created a chart like this or found one for sale? Any tips or advice for meal planning? I'm also interested in some more easy & tasty casseroles, (or even cookbooks that have good ideas). Thanks!

Cloth Diapering FAQ's!

For anyone interested in making the switch to cloth diapers, here's a great place to start! I wrote this post up on Babycenter, but thought readers on here could benefit from it as well. If you see anything I'm missing, or have a link you think I should add, please let me know!

Will switching to cloth diapers save me money?
As long as you don't go overboard with buying diapers (trust me, it gets addictive with all the cool colors out there), then you can come out ahead. Expecially if you use them for more than one child. Mine were paid off within 4 months since I used them for 2 children at the same time.
Try this cost caluclator to get an idea of how long it will take before the cloth diapers have paid for themselves by switching from disposables http://www.diaperpin.com/calculator/calculator.asp http://www.punkinbutt.com/diaper_dollar.php This second site has a great example comparing the costs to cloth diaper a newborn vs. using disposables.
Also, did you know that cloth diapers are resellable? You can make some of your money back by selling them when your children are done with diapers.

What are prefolds, pockets, and AIOs???
http://www.diaperjungle.com/cloth-diaper-types.html (This one has a nice chart where you can compare the different types side by side)

How much of everything do I need to buy to get started?
http://nickisdiapers.com/faqs.php

How often do I need to wash the diapers and covers?
Every 2-3 days to prevent stains and smells from setting in.

How do I wash Cloth Diapers?
Here's what I do:
Rinse cycle on cold, wash on hot using 1/4 recommended ammount of detergent, then rinse cycle on hot with 3-4 drops of lavendar essential oil.
Here are a couple links with more info. on washing:
http://www.punkinbutt.com/easywash_diapertype.php
http://www.diaperaps.com/home/dp1/launder_main.html
http://www.cottonbabies.com/clothdiapers.php#detergent

What types of Detergents are alright to use?
www.diaperjungle.com/detergent-chart.html
However, many moms recommend that you STAY AWAY from using detergants marked "Free and Clear". They say it causes build up on the diapers. So, keep that in mind as you read the detergant recommendations. I use regular Tide and it seems to work well. Make sure you only use 1/4-1/2 the ammount you would usually use for a load of laundry; this helps prevent detergant build up as well.

I have a HE washer, do I need to wash my diapers a special way?
http://www.diaperjungle.com/he-detergent-chart.html

I can't keep up with regular laundry, how in the world would I be able to keep up with washing diapers too?!?
It's really not that bad, really. I have a hard time keeping up with laundry, (it's usually all clean, but rarely put away), but doing diaper laundry doesn't seem like much work. I just wash the diapers, pull out my covers and pockets to air dry, stuff the other diapers in the dryer, then stuff them into a laundry basket. I used to fold them afterwards, but now I just keep them in the basket and pull what I need as I go through the day. If I can do it, then surely you can do it too!
Here's a link with a time evaluation that's worth checking out:
http://www.pinstripesandpolkadots.com/TimeEvaluation.htm

How do I cloth diaper a newborn? Do you have any special advice?
I haven't tried it yet- my babies were 4 months & 1 1/2 when I started up. Here's a couple links with advice from people who've used cloth with a newborn:
http://community.babycenter.com/talk/a740705/advice_for_newborn_cd
Here's one more link to newborn cloth diapering info.:
http://www.verybaby.com/ccp0-display/newborn.html


How do I make my own wipes solution?
An easy way is to make up the solution and keep it in a spray bottle.When you need a wipe, just spray the solution on a wet wash cloth just before use. I use the Anti-fungal recipe for my baby from Diva Diapers. Their website has many great wipes solution recipes worth checking out:
http://www.divadiapers.com/pages/wipesolutions.php

Can you use cloth diapers while out of the house? What about for longer trips?
I use cloth diapers while out- it's no big deal! Many ladies use wet bags to hold their dirty diapers, but you can also just use a grocery sack. I use a Happy Tushies Wonderbag and it works great for on the go. It has two seperate sides- one holds wet diapers, the other for holding clean. You can snap the sides together and it becomes one bag. There are two loops for hanging the bag on a door handle, or even on a stroller. Here's the link from the company I bought mine through (which had great customer service, BTW): http://www.wildflowerdiapers.com/store/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=442&idproduct=2480
Here's info. on how to cloth diaper even while camping! http://www.thediaperhyena.com/clothdiaperarticle_campingwithcloth.htm
http://www.verybaby.com/ccp0-display/outandabout.html

Do you have any sites you reccommend for getting reviews on cloth diapering brands?
Diaper pin has reviews on just about everything!
http://www.diaperpin.com/diapers/diaperpages.asp

My diapers are starting to leak a lot and I think it may be due to detergant build up. How do I strip the diapers?
1. Washing clean diapers on hot 2-3 times without detergent.2. Washing diapers on hot with a squirt of Dawn dishwashing soap.
(taken from diaperjungle.com)

Our Journey to Homeschooling...

How did we get started in homeschooling? 6 years ago, when I was pregnant with my oldest, there was a family at our church that was homeschooling. The mom was not what I had expected a homeschooling mom to look like. She was smart, funny, and cute, and her kids actually looked normal. So much for my idea that homeschoolers were weird. I thought, okay, if she can educate her kids at home and have fun, then maybe I can too.

I decided to search the library for every single book on homeschooling I could find. Then I would sit down with my stack at home and soak up every word. The more I read, the more I thought- "I can and SHOULD do this!".

So then my son made his entrance into the world and I was in love with him instantly. Within 2 days of bringing him home from the hospital, I was reading to him. We would go to the library and check out cool picture books and read them to him at least 1-2x's a day.

The reading paid off, because as he became older, we could tell he was quite advanced for his age. As our other 3 children have been born, we've done art projects together, a monthly velcro calendar, science experiments, and of course, read tons of books together!
So for us, homeschooling is an adventure we started at birth, not something we waited until kindergarten for. I love teaching my children and look forward to all the fascinating things we'll be learning in the years to come!



*If you're a homeschooling mom, let me know! I love hearing from others who are going through this same adventure.
**Also, if you're thinking about homeschooling, but are on the fence, you should check out John Taylor Gatto's "Dumbing Us Down". Gatto's books are REALLY long, but worth the time as they give insight into the state of our current public educational system.

What NOT to Journal

As a conclusion to the series on How to Journal, I'd like to take a moment to address what NOT to write in your journal.

Before I address this subject, though, I want you to think about the purpose of your journal. Are you writing it for yourself? For your children or grandchildren? Whatever the reason, every time you pick up your journal and write, you're leaving a little piece of yourself behind. From reading your words, someone else gets an idea of what kind of person you are and what's inside your heart.

Now think about what would happen if you were no longer here and one of the few things your family has left of you is your journals. When they pick one up and start to read, what do you want them to see?

I know that writing is a wonderful outlet for letting out bottled up feelings as well as releasing stress and anger. However, I suggest you avoid writing any overly negative or nasty things about your spouse and children. You know the kind- when you and your husband have just had a huge fight and it feels like the end of the world. So you decide to pull out your pen and paper to write down all the details of how you feel so wronged and why you are entitled to feel that way. Maybe you don't feel comfortable sharing what's going on with anyone else, but the journal seems safe. So you spill out all the yuckiness onto your precious journal pages.

Next time you feel like that, don't put the words into your journal! Or if you just can't resist, write it in journal and rip the pages out (or better yet, use a piece of notebook paper)- tearing them into a thousand tiny pieces to flush down the toilet! Why would I suggest such a thing? For the reason that if something ever did happen to you, all your husband has left of you is this journal. No matter how mad you are at him (or the kids), do you really want him to spend the rest of his life thinking you thought he was a jerk? Even if it was only a one time entry and you were over those feelings fast, it could still leave him feeling quite taken aback.

I'm not saying you can't write about little annoyances, or crazy the things your husband does, or even details from an argument. I'm saying you should leave out the bitterness and nastiness that can come out when your heart isn't right. We're going to leave a legacy for our children, so let's do it right! Use your words to uplift, encourage, and strengthen even long after you're gone.

This wraps up my How To Journal series. If you have a journaling, cloth diapering, homeschooling, or c-section topic you'd like to see addressed in a future post, leave a comment and let me know!

***More Journaling Posts You Might Have Missed:

**Journal Page Ideas!
**Ideas for Keeping a Mother's Journal
**Journaling...
**Cool Journals to Pick Up!

Cool Journals to Pick Up!

Yesterday I shared some examples from my own journals. Are you interested in starting a Mother's Journal but don't have one yet? You might consider a journal by Paperblanks. I have a Paperblanks Journal for each of my daughters (as seen in the top photo from yesterday's entry). The covers on these journals are GORGEOUS! They each have a nice hard cover that is luminescent and beautiful. There is a ribbon marker inside to mark your place. The pages are lined, so it's easy to keep your writing neat. There is even a memento pouch in the back to store tickets, letters, or other sentimental items. If you're looking for a journal that is pleasing to the sight and well crafted than this is one you should defiantly check out!
Here are some other beautiful journals by Paperblanks:

Below are some other beautiful journals that I've seen online. I have not personally tried these, but thought the covers were pretty and like the great price!

The black and white journal features a magnetic flap closure. The others use an elastic band closure. All of the journals shown below contain a useful pocket in the back for storing mementos such as cards, have a ribbon marker, and feature free shipping from Amazon.com when you place a $25 order!

Still not seeing a journal you're interested in? Try your local Mardel or Borders. Both stores have a good selection. Make sure you look for one that is archival quality, has the pages set well, includes an attatched ribbon for marking your place, and has lines (unless you are good at keeping your writing staright without them).

Have a question about journaling? Leave a comment and ask away!
Come back tommorow as I address what NOT to journal.

Other recent entries of mine on Journaling:

Journal Page Ideas!

Ideas for Keeping a Mother's Journal

Journaling...

Journal Page Ideas & Examples

By now you should be ready to pick up a journal and start writing!
As fun as blogging is, it's even better to have your thoughts on paper, in your OWN handwriting- a treasure to leave your children and grandchildren forever! It doesn't have to be complicated or time consuming. Just pick up a pen and get started!

In addition to writing on the main part of the journal pages, I usually start off by writing down the date & time in the upper corner of the page. I also write down major milestones my children have recently accomplished, and other world events. Basically just a brief recap of what's happened since my last entry.

i.e. today's page might look like this:

Sunday, January 4th, 2009
Unusually warm for January yesterday!
Baby started pulling up 12/27/08! Cutting her first moler on upper right side. Very Cranky.
Gasoline only $1.49 a gallon!
Big Guy 1/2 way through 1st. grade math!
Little Guy knows a few sight words!
Little Darling is speaking in sentences as complex as Little Guy!

The page on the right is one I did after one of my children was born. I added pictures along with my journaling- the images along with my words helped capture the complexity of what happened that day.

Something else I enjoy adding to my journal is a running list. Running Lists are pages that I can come back to and continue to add to as time goes by. I have found these expecially helpfull during pregnancy or while raising a baby as there are many lists that come up during those times.
Here's a few examples of lists I've included:

*Hospital Visitors & Gifts I do this while in the hospital as I am sure to forget later on
*Baby's First Words including date she started saying them
*Pregnancy Symptoms & date they started I had fun listing these out as they appeared with my last pregnancy
*Possible Baby Names I loved going through the baby name books for ideas, but sometimes a name would just hit me out of the blue. I would then grab my journal and jot it down before I would forget. It's fun now to see what our kids' names could have been!

*Dream Vacation Spots

In addition to journaling at home, I've also taken my personal journal along on vacations.
Here's an example from a trip to Colorado.
On one page, I sketched a picture of the view out the window we were staying. On another page I used adhesive to stick down a photograph from the trip. I also wrote some details about our trip and how it felt to visit Colorado that I may have forgotten had I not taken the time to get it on paper!

One of my favorite things in my journals, are the tracings of my children's hands. I try to include hand & foot tracings every month or two. It's fun to compare how big their hands are now with years past! Here are a couple examples of handprints from my books:
Have a journaling question? Leave a comment and ask away. I will wrap up the journaling segment Tuesday as I will also address what NOT to journal. Have a happy Sunday!

Ideas for Keeping a Mother's Journal

• Always record the date you are writing!
• Record Baby's Weight and Height
• Whenever you journal, write what milestones Baby is doing, such as: First Smiles, Can Hold Head Steady, 1st. Road Trip, First Night of 5 Hours of Sleeping in a Row...
• Who came to visit you in the hospital and gifts you received
• How life has changed since Baby was born
• Write about holidays as they come up. Record special memories.
• Trace Baby's hand or foot every month or two- make sure you label the date & Baby's age!
• Write out your Baby's birth story
• World Events
• Prayers for Baby- Baby will look back someday and see how you were praying for him/her and will see the power of prayer and God's grace and love
• Prayer Requests and Answered Prayers- if you learn something from the experience, jot it down
• Family Events
• The Cost of... gasoline, bread, milk, movie tickets, your house (or rent), ect.
• What a typical day in your life is like (this will change often)
• Your Favorite- books, movies, games, memories..
• Baby's Favorite- books, toys, movies, games, ect.
• Vacation and Day Trips
• Doodles
• Glue in a photo from time to time
• Your Love Story with your husband- How you met & fell in love
• Sweet things your husband does
• 1st. Date Night after Baby is born
• If you are a Christian, write out how you came to know Jesus Christ- how has life changed since?
  Goals/Resolutions for the upcoming year

Journaling...

Journaling is a great way to record how God is working in your life. When days are tough, you can look back and remember how He's always taken care of you. It's also a lot of fun to remember when significant events happened and what life was like at the time.

You can use a journal to write down the funny things your kids say, to write notes to your children, or just to write out your everyday thoughts.

Keeping a journal doesn't have to take a lot of time. Set aside once every week or two to write a little about what's going on. Tommorow I will share some ideas for keeping a Mother's Journal!