Hide Those Chords

As I was trying to organize my entertainment center I found a few loose chords/plugs. I wanted to keep them near the TV since that is what they plug into.

This beautiful box opens like a book, but is hollow for storage. I purchased it from Michael's for less than $5

 There's plenty of room for more chords, which I'm sure we'll accumulate.

 It looks very nice on the top of the entertainment center. No unsightly plugs hanging around.

Watermelon Popsicles for Kids & Watermelon Ice Cubes for the Grown Ups

I wanted to make some watermelon popsicles for my daughter so when I made a trip to Sam's Club I bought a gigantic watermelon. Seriously, this thing was a beast. These are so easy to make and they are healthy treats for the kids. If you are looking for something with more flavor you can add orange juice or other fruits to this. I like making the simple watermelon pops because they are very healthy - no added sugars. My toddler loves them.

All you have to do is chop up some watermelon and toss it in your food processor.

It only takes a minute to get it nice and smooth.

Once it's smooth, pour it into something more manageable for pouring into small popsicle molds.

Once you have your molds filled, place it in the freezer. Viola! Healthy snacks your tot will love, CHECK!

I got these cute crayon popsicle molds at Walmart for about $3.

 I had so much watermelon I decided to freeze some in an ice cube tray. These would be great in a fruity drink or a cocktail for the grown ups. Instead of watering down a drink, these cubes will flavor up a drink.

I even had all this watermelon after I was done with the popsicles. It was seriously a HUGE watermelon. Well worth the money. I made a watermelon delivery to my family when I was done cutting it all.

 

Meat Cake. You can't win em' all.

I got home late one afternoon and realized I should've started the meatloaf some time ago. Instead of thinking of something else for dinner I moved ahead with the meatloaf since my mind was made up. I though if I just flattened completely like a cake it would cook fast enough to be done in time for dinner. I was right, it cooked in time, but it was no bueno. I didn't think about the fact that since I flattened the meat there was nowhere for the grease to go. It just sat on the top. Almost floating on the top if you will. It was gross. I had to scrape the fat and grease off before we ate it. So if you're thinking about making a meat cake to save time DON'T DO IT! Just make mini meat loaves or burgers instead. This is what you call a dinner FAIL. Hey, you can't win them all.

Stickers!

Lets face it. Kids love stickers. However, they can be a parents worst nightmare. Playing with stickers can be fun as long as your child know where it is ok and where it is not ok to stick them. As young as my daughter is she was able to understand and follow the rules. I bought a huge pack of stickers at the Dollar Tree for a buck. When my niece came over, I gave her and my daughter each a sheet of stickers and let them decorate their toy cars with them. The smaller the stickers the better because it keeps them busy longer. You also don't want any that are too sticky. They should be easy to get off. This kept them busy for a while and they had fun trickin' out their rides!

Chalk it up in the house

If you live somewhere that is as hot and humid as Florida then you'll understand why we do alot of outdoor activities inside. My daughter seems to be very sensitive to the sun and the heat. Even if she has tons of sunblock on and we are in the shade her face gets bright pink from the heat.

So this may seem crazy to some people, but we like to occasionally chalk it up in the house!

It's a great learning tool too. Have them sort the colors. Ask them to put all the green on one side, pink on this side, etc.

You can teach them shapes and colors.   Go over emotions like happy and sad.

You can always use a chalkboard if you have one, but it doesn't have the same fun factor as drawing all over the floor. Its just a little extra work for mommy, but I think it's worth it.

If you're child is a little older try playing hopscotch. That's always fun.

Election Time Prank / Practical Joke

Oh yes, it is that time again. Elections. We see it all over TV, the radio, and in everyone's front yards. Here is a fun joke to play. Just make sure you do it to someone you know. Don't go into strangers yards and mess with their signs because I don't think they will find it funny.

Simply swap signs. If they have a Romney sign, swap it with an Obama sign. If they have an Obama sign, swap it with Romney. It doesn't matter who you have chosen to vote for. This is just for fun.

We pulled this prank on both my father and my neighbor. It really got a raise out of them! Once you get a good rise out of them, tell them not to worry and that you will get their signs back to them. Trust me, you will all get a good laugh!

 This is our neighbors front yard. They have two Romney signs. We switched them with Obama signs when they left the house. They were in for a shock when they got home!

Halloween Candy Corn or Ghost Footprints

Halloween is over, but that doesn't mean you have to pack up the decorations yet. Since Halloween was on Wednesday this year, we have decided to continue celebrating probably till the weekend. I'll probaby pack everything up Sunday or Monday.

If you haven't already made something like this with the kids hand or footprints there's still time. My sister-in-law is making one of these today. It's a great decoration and keepsake. It's also very easy to make.

You will need:
yellow, orange, and white paint
construction paper
scrabook paper
Halloween die cut pieces
glue
frame

1. Sit your child down and apply paint to their foot. I had to use my finger to apply it because the paintbrush was tickling my daughters feet.

2. Gently press their foot onto the paper. This can be tricky especially if they are wiggling. As you can see my footprint on the left is a little bigger than the right because she moved. Don't worry about imperfections. It will still be cute and amazing. I then let this dry overnight.

3. For the other supplies: I purchased this 8x10 frame from Walmart for about $3. The scrapbook paper can be purchased in single sheets from Michaels for $0.59. If you go today you can probably get killer post holiday deals. I also purchased the die-cut from Michaels. I used K&Company Kelly Panacci Halloween Glitter Die-Cut.

4. I used a photo cutter to make the scrapbook paper exactly 8x10 to fit the frame.

5. Cut out your footprints.

6. Arrange the footprints and die cut on the paper then glue them into place.

7. For the year: I didn't have die cut pieces or stickers for that, but I sure wish I did. I printed that on the computer and cut it out. It was a pain doing it that way, but it looks great.

8. Clean the glass of the picture frame with windex so its nice and clean. Once the glass and your paper is completely dry you can put it in the frame.

You're done! Time to show it off.

You can also make Ghosts with their footprints. Just wait untill the white paint dries then paint eyes and a mouth on to make it look like a ghost.