Our Primary Colors are 1, 2, 3

We made a fresh (double!) batch of our favorite play clay this morning (found by way of my new favorite make-a-mess-with-your-kids blog, Filth Wizardry). It made enough to make three really good sized balls of clay for our primary colors!

Ernie was rather hesitant when I handed her small balls of clay and told her to smash them together, but once she saw the results she had TONS of fun doing this!

We made a grid, labeled with our possible color combinations, and she drew pictures of what she made. Choosing a marker helped her decide what color her clay had turned.

We talked about what the primary colors are, and how ANY color can be made by mixing these together. Next time I'm hoping I can help her choose a marker, and then she can decide which colors she'd need to mix together to match.

Beautiful Life: Checking In

Welcome to another week of Beautiful Life! I wrote this letter to my Dad and sister yesterday, hoping to make up for the fact that I hadn't spoken to them in a little while. Re-reading it, I'm so grateful that I can be home with my children, that we have a home to be in, and that I have such a wonderful family.

What are you doing today?

Just checking in- my phone is acting up, so it's plugged into the wall.

We spent the morning eating breakfast, making swords and shields, "fighting" (Ernie kindly put my head back on after she very carefully cut it off ALL THE WAY AROUND. By the way, if ever you need to re-attach a head, simply place your sword on the victim's neck and slice around the opposite direction. If you're the victim, remember to ask nicely.) We also slew a dragon, woke the sleeping beauty cabbage patch doll (who is currently wearing a newborn-sized sleeper), and I had to send Ernie to trick the Fates (sisters) into giving her a berry from the fire bush to bring me back to life. She brought it back quite easily- I asked her where it came from, and she said "the store. Take off the wrapper." We have a little gardening-education to instill yet! But I think our Medieval history/fairy tale "school unit" (HA) is coming along nicely, don't you?

We went to the library-- I got a book on container gardening and another on home cheese production-- and then the girls split a Top Ramen for lunch. [The painter] should finish painting the house trim (and touching up the siding) tomorrow- the girls have gotten used to seeing him and his son out of ALL our windows, at various parts of the day. I run around trying to shut curtains before he gets there!

My visiting teachers come in 20 minutes, Wonder Daddy is at a baseball game this afternoon, and our CSA box came in yesterday so we'll probably have beet greens with our dinner.

I'm reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle- the story of a family who moved from Tucson back to the family farm in Appalachia and tried their hand and eating ONLY local food for a year. Their 3rd-grade daughter has just received shipment on 24 poultry chicks, for her egg and meat business. This is hard-core :) At the very least, I've learned that I was at least 2 months late starting my potatoes, broccoli, onions, and beans. (And, as I just reminded Wonder Daddy and myself, this year's garden is 1000% better than last years...so live and learn. We'll get there eventually.)

I know I posted about this, but Ernie's party was VERY fun- she couldn't have been happier. The kids played nicely, and everything went well. The moms were impressed with my homemade french bread and butter...which is ironic, considering how little time they took. Now the FLOWER crowns- why couldn't those have inspired any adulations? :) They were fiddly and difficult!

Loves-

Myrnie

Did He Pass?

Yes he did!

So, you know how some things are just SO huge that you don't even know how to say it?

Wonder Daddy passed his test.

*cue the triumphant fanfare*

We are one ethics test away from full and complete CPA-dom!

I had no idea that sheer tension was keeping us upright- we're somewhat akin to puddles at this point. But, we're very HAPPY puddles.

Wonder Daddy, I love you and I am SO proud of you!

Princess for a Day

Today was Ernie's very first birthday party- what a fun thing!

We're currently in a "fairy tale" unit, with lots of princesses, knights, role-playing, and stories. Lots and LOTS of stories. I thought it only fitting to have a fairy tale birthday party.

The girls made princess hats (and our lone boy made a king crown...but he thought the streamers were so pretty, he requested two. Pink, please. Atta boy!)

There were flower crowns for the girls to take home (thanks, Su!)

And a dashing felt hat for our boy.

A lot of our ideas came from the book Days of Knights and Damsels: An Activity Guide. Our library has "kits" you can check out- our first kit was the "knights and castles" kit- it included books, a CD, a movie, and a puppet! So, so much fun. We've especially loved this book- it's full of ideas of medieval foods, crafts, costumes, games, and art. The flower crowns and felt hat were all inspired from this book, as well as some of our games (Blind Man's Bluff, anyone?) and our lunch (poached chicken, cheese, fruit, and crusty french bread with fresh butter...someone please confiscate that butter? It's SO good. Thanks.)

We also sent all the kids home with hobby horses- you know, horse heads on sticks? A VERY lucky find at the dollart store yesterday- all down time during the party was consumed in a constant parade of kids on horses, screaming "neigh! neigh! neigh!" as they galloped through the kitchen, hid behind couches, and generally showed the joie de vivre that only 3 and 4-year-olds can.

Does anyone remember their first birthday party? I'm not sure I do, but I remember that my mom always threw the best parties for us. They were so ORGANIZED. My mom is the queen of lists.

Simple Skirt Tutorial

This is, honestly, the easiest skirt you'll ever make.

You'll need a bit of fabric, selvedge to selvedge (those are the woven edges, not the cut edges.) I like to cruise the remnant bins at my fabric store- anything over a 1/4 yard works great as a skirt for my oldest daughter!

You'll also need either ribbon or a bit of elastic. The ribbon should be about 18 inches longer than the waist, elastic should be 2 or 3 inches shorter.

Hem or finish both long (cut) sides of the fabric. Fold the top edge over 1 inch and sew to make a casing. (On this skirt I used biase tape on the bottom edge, and serged the top.) If you're using elastic, fold the casing to the INSIDE of the skirt, if you're using ribbon fold it to the OUTSIDE.

Sew both short (selvedge) edges together, starting UNDERNEATH the casing.

Thread the elastic or ribbon through the casing- if it's ribbon, you're done. If it's elastic, sew the ends together, and hand-stitch the casing shut.

And...ta-daa!

Getcher Hot Pasta Here!

Head over to The Chow Review for a brand-spankin' new recipe!

Can I get a nom nom?

Asparagus and Spinach Hot Pasta Toss

Frugal 101: Making Stuff

I am SO sorry I left you all hanging- I know you just can't rest until you see the rest of my Frugal 101 series (right??)  I tried.  I really did.  I had part two- all about making stuff, and fun and easy gifts.  I had at least 15 hyper-links embedded, to show you tutorials and examples.  I was starting to put in pictures.  Then...I don't know, exactly.  My font went to about 36 pica, the lines were double-spaced, and it wouldn't auto-save.  I shut down and hoped for the best...and the post is still there, and all the links and pictures are GONE.  Sigh.  *whine moan complain*

OK, that's out of my system!

Seriously, I think this is a HUGE part of living an abundant and frugal life.  I love giving gifts and making people happy, and feeling like I don't have enough to spare to give a nice gift makes me feel so wretched.  I think that's why I started making as many gifts as I could.  But, make no mistake: it takes time, so plan ahead!

Homemade goodies are great, because they're inexpensive, appreciated, and you can make MULTIPLE gifts at the same time (a huge boon in the holiday season.)  Make jam in the summer, and package in small containers for easy holiday gifts.  Cookies and candies can be fairly easy to whip up- I think my favorite holiday treat so far to pass out was these pretzel bites.  They're so tasty, and my 2-year-old was able to help.

Check out my sidebar for tutorials- crayon rolls, purses, small home items, etc.  

Another favorite gift of mine is jewelry- with a few skills (how to open and close jump rings, how to use crimp beads, how to...string beads on wire, string, or pins) you can make an astonishing number of things, for sometimes pennies on the dollar of what you'd pay at the store.  

Honestly, the hardest part of jewelry-making so far has been figuring out what materials to use, but you'll get the hang of it pretty quickly after using a few tutorials online and seeing how different pieces behave.

Embroidery is another easy, inexpensive skill to learn, that makes ordinary gifts "special."

What about you?  What do you make for your family or friends?  Do you think it saves you money?