How to Keep Toddlers out of the Christmas Tree

How to Keep Toddlers out of the Christmas Tree

Christmas is such a fun time for me. The tree has always had a certain magic about it when all the other lights are off and the tree is glowing and lighting up the room. Every year after we decorate the tree, we turn off the living room lights and sit and admire the Christmas Tree while drinking Hot Chocolate or Eggnog. 

At Christmas time, about 5 years ago, my 4th child was about 20 months old. Connor was into everything. My mother frequently called him the Tasmanian Devil when she visited. My other children were typical and got into things, but Connor made it his full time job. He ran from one disaster to the next. 

Every year we pick out a live tree from a local hardware store. I remember the day we brought our tree home. I put the kids down for a nap and the house was quiet. I sat looking at the bare tree and thought, "How am I going to keep Connor out of the tree?!" Because the tree has always had a special place in my heart, I can't bear the thought of only decorating the top half of the tree. Blocking it off wouldn't stop him and I didn't want him getting hurt, As I sat and contemplated my dilemma, I had the impression come to my mind, "How would you feel if you were told "NO" all day long?" I stopped short and realized, with a sinking feeling, that he was not feeling much love from me. How could he if most of our interaction was me telling him "no". Tears welled in my eyes and then the thought came to me, "Teach him what he can do". 

When he woke from his nap, I brought him over to the tree and taught him the "1 finger touch" rule. Grabbing wasn't allowed, but he could "1 finger touch" all he wanted. We decorated the tree later that night and we taught him again. We would purposely bring him to the tree and say "Touch" and show him how to touch. 

I was blown away that by giving him permission and teaching him what was acceptable, that he actually did as we taught him. He was Nonverbal at the time, and he still ran around making terrible messes around the house, but he learned. I learned to not underestimate children.

This one rule has done wonders in my house. I teach preschool where the kids have access to the Christmas tree in December. I have taught children that like to grab and collect little treasures they find. I take them to the tree and teach them that they can touch all they want, but not grab. It works so well, the parents start using it as well.

The wonderful thing about the 1 finger touch rule, is this applies to other situations. The other day we were in a store with breakable things all over and no shopping carts to contain my littlest one. I reminded her to one finger touch in the store when she saw things she liked. 

I have taught children that are special needs, or ones that struggle following directions and love getting into messes. Children are teachable if you take the time. Teach them what they can do and they will amaze you. This experience has made me grateful to God, for teaching me how to show love to my children and have more peace in the home. 

Snickers Pie

Snicker's Pie

I found this recipe years ago and it is one of my family's favorites. We have it every Thanksgiving and Christmas.

I found the original recipe here.

The recipe calls for 3 Full sized candy bars but if you like more on top, you can get 4. I think it would look more enticing but would be overkill. This pie is light and creamy.

Snicker's Pie
(Makes 2 Pies)

8 oz Cream Cheese, soft
1 1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
1/2 Cup Peanut Butter
3 Regular Sized Snicker's Bars, chopped
16 oz Cool Whip, thaw
2 Chocolate Crusts
Chocolate and Caramel Sauce

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, and peanut butter until creamy. Stir in chopped candy bars, reserving some for the top. Gently fold in the cool whip. Divide between the two crusts. Sprinkle the reserved chopped snickers on top. Drizzle chocolate and caramel sauce on top.

Preschool Theme: Feelings

At Preschool we celebrated Friendship Week. I felt that it was also fitting that we learned about Feelings at the same time. We all got to look at our faces in the mirror as we talked about some of the feelings we experience. 

It is okay to feel what we do, but it is not okay to be mean when we are angry. I like to give several examples for the kids to understand that concept. This is great to do at the beginning of the year, or as needed with certain children. 

I made these books for our younger kids so they can read them at home with their parents. 

Transportation Week: Sink or Float

Transportation Week: Sink or Float

We had Transportation Week at Preschool recently. We made Cardboard Cars, Painted with Trains and Car Wheels, and Color Matched the colors of the Stop Light. As a way to incorporate science, we had a Sink or Float Experiment. I thought for sure all the cars and trains would sink and only my boats would float. I was pleased to see that quite a few cars and trains remained floating. 

Each of the children predict whether they think the vehicle will sink to the bottom or float at the top of the water. I make sure to have a clear bowl for the kids to see around the table. 

During Free Play time, we bring out the water table and add some dish soap to make bubbles. Then the kids pretend they are at the car wash. This is another great way for the kids to explore on their own the concept of sink/float. 

For the Full Post on Transportation Week, Click Here. 

Fall Bucket List

Fall Bucket List

For the first time this year, we tried out a Summer Bucket List. I wasn't sure if it would overwhelm me and make me feel pressured to get all of it finished. Instead, it ended up encouraging me to get to most the things I've been wanting to do for years. I thought it would be fun if we did a Fall list this year as well. There are things I have been wanting to do for a while, so I am hoping this will encourage me to do most of them. Some are for Preschool, Some are for the family, and some are for the adults.


1. Get lost in a Corn Maze


2. Make an Autumn Sun Catcher

3. Halloween Party for the Kids

4. Visit a Pumpkin Patch and pick out Pumpkins


5.  Go Apple Picking and make Applesauce

6. Take Family Pictures

7. Make Homemade Root Beer


8. Make Caramel Apples

9. Bonfire or Fire Pit with S'mores

10. Jump and Play in a pile of Leaves


11. Watch Hocus Pocus

12. Hay Ride

13. Scenic Autumn Drive


14. Make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

15. School Carnival

16. Host a Murder Mystery Party



17. Pine Cone Experiment Get them to open up with heat (blow dryer)

18. Make Halloween Cupcakes 

19. Go to a Haunted House or Make a Gingerbread Haunted House


20. Pumpkin Sensory
  
21. Go Costume Shopping at the Halloween Store

22. Make Pie



23. Make a Thankful Tree

24. Thanksgiving Turkeys

25. Go to the Renaissance Fair

 What are you doing this Fall?

Enjoy Every Moment... what a load of crap!

A few months back, my friend and I were talking about some of the bad advice that is given to new mothers. She mentioned that one of the ones she hated the most is when people tell her to enjoy every moment. I had to agree with her. I would even wager that it is a complete impossibility to enjoy every moment of parenthood. Being told to enjoy every moment ends up leaving you feeling like a terrible parent when you aren't enjoying the hard times. You feel even worse when you know some of your friends are infertile and want a baby so bad it hurts, yet you get caught up in a rough moment with your child and lose it. It has left me feeling guilty on many occasions and at the end of the night, once all the kids are sleeping peacefully, I am always wanting a redo. WHY didn't I enjoy every moment of today? My family is the greatest blessing I have so why did I just sit there and glare at them for half an hour when they were overwhelming me?

It's because I am human, and that means I am imperfect.

I've started getting small glimpses how quickly time is slipping away from me. My oldest just started middle school and my youngest is well on her way to 4 years old. The other day I was looking at their baby pictures I have hanging around the house. I stopped and had a small freak out when I realized, IT'S GONE. The baby years are gone from my house, most likely forever. The toddler years are gone. The preschool years are slipping faster than I imagined they would.

Despite all of that, sometimes life is just hard. It was hard trying to get my boys to sleep when they were babies, especially Zack. I don't miss the times I cried from exhaustion and the times he screamed just because I was holding him. I don't miss worrying if Connor would talk and the long process of helping him figure it out. I don't miss Quinn's years of food texture issues and the gagging and complete freak out moments. It was hard even just writing about it! I don't miss the times of worry and fear as we sought answers for Abby's medical questions. I don't miss holding her down to have blood draws and the years she only wanted Dad because of it. I don't miss the years of poopy underwear, Can I say that? I don't miss having to ask for help when our power was shut off.

I could list plenty more, but I think you get the point. I don't enjoy every moment of motherhood. We have to experience the pain in order to feel joy. We have to have hard times with our kids to truly understand that the sweet times are worth treasuring.


Elder Eldred G Smith said, "So it is with us today, we must also have the bitter in order to know the sweet. Sometimes some of us think we have the bitter and not enough of the sweet. This is normal. We all have our trials of life to strengthen us. Each thinks he has the hardest or most severe trials. It may be that they are the most difficult only because they are the hardest or most difficult for you. The diamond is enhanced and made more valuable with polishing. Steel is made harder and more valuable through tempering. So also opposition builds the character of man."   Full Article


I want the hard times to polish me as a mother and as a person.

One thing we did, as a family, to enjoy the moments of our day, was to write them down. At dinner, we each share the high part and low part of our day. At one point, I used to write them down. This has become a treasure for our family to go back and read. When I was writing them down, Connor was talking minimally and Quinn was a year old, so he wasn't talking either. We asked them their high part, and then I wrote what they did. One day Connor would say his high part was "bun bowling" which was a phrase he said frequently that meant "fun bowling". For Quinn, one night I wrote, "He smiled and then stuck his finger in his nose". It was fun to go back and see which friend Abby liked at the time, and to even remember my high parts of the endless days, years ago. One of our treasured entries is when my mother in law ate dinner with us, who has since passed away.

I am setting out a spiral notebook again and we are going to start this again. It doesn't take much of my time, and the little time it does take, is worth the effort for all of us. This is one thing we have done to ENJOY A MOMENT. Take a few minutes each day to remember and enjoy something that happened that day.



What do you do to enjoy the moments in your life?

Canning Pineapple

Canning Pineapple

Let me introduce you to the best tasting, most tender, golden, home canned Pineapple there is. 

Don't fret, it's the easiest thing to can and is immensely worth it!

After canning Peaches, Pears, and Applesauce and realizing how much tastier they are than what you can buy at the Grocery Store, I got to thinking that canned Pineapple might taste better too. I asked my friends, who can, if they have ever canned Pineapple and they gave me strange looks and asked me why anyone would bother. This did not deter me. I googled to make sure it can be done. I wish I could find the source I originally found, but it is buried in Google somewhere. I waited until Pineapples went on sale and I got them for about $1.00 a piece.

The first time trying our home canned Pineapple, I was sold. The Pineapple not only tastes WAY better than what you can get at the Grocery store, but it is also more tender. My friends have since tried the pineapple and now they understand why I can it. If you get the pineapple on sale, it saves you a lot of money. I already had the jars, and the sugar. You do need new lids for your jars, and then the cost of the Pineapple. At Walmart, you can get an 8 oz jar of Pineapple tidbits for about .88. For 24 of them, it would cost you $21.12. The Pineapple and lids cost you about $12 total so it is half the price. Even if it cost more, I would still can it because it tastes so much better. The other nice thing, is it is the easiest thing I have canned so far. It is faster to prep the fruit and it takes less time to process it. 

I've read online that the Pineapple is acidic enough that you don't need to add any sugar, but I used the same measurements that I do for my Pears and Peaches. The first time I did it, I used 6 Pineapples and it made me about 24 half pint jars with some left over. You can use it in desserts or with dinners like Stir Fry, Haystacks and Pizza nights.

For Canning, You will need a Canner. For Fruit you can use a Water Bath Canner. (This is a 9 piece set for a great price. It has all the utensils you need. If you have a Glass Top Stove, You have to can with a flat bottom pan. They are pricier, but I got mine at Winco. I still needed the kit with the basket and tools. 

How to Can Pineapple

Gather all your supplies: Pineapples, Sugar, Water Bath Canner, Tool Kit, Wire Basket, Cutting Board, Long Serrated Knife, Cleaned and Sterilized Jars, New Lids, Separate Large Pot for Cooking the Pineapple in, and Pineapple Slicer and Corer (Optional. You can just use a knife too if you want)

Fill your water bath canner half full to 2/3 full with water and turn on high heat. In the pot you plan on cooking your pineapple in, add about 8 cups water and 3 1/2 cups sugar for about 6-7 pineapples. Leave the syrup water on medium heat. You want it hot, but not boiling. Cut the top, bottom, and sides off from the pineapple. 

To remove the core, stand the pineapple up and cut down the pineapple in the middle. Turn and cut again, the opposite way, so there are 4 large wedges. Lay each piece down so the core is facing up, and cut lengthwise to remove the core. 

Cut all the pineapple in chunks or tidbits. Once all the pineapples have been cut, put the pineapples in the hot syrup and stir occasionally for 10 minutes. In the meantime, simmer your lids (not rings) on medium heat. 

Ladel the pineapple into your prepared jars, leaving 1/2 inch space from the top. Remove the bubbles with a plastic knife, and wipe the tops of the jars with a clean, wet, rag or paper towel. Put on your simmered lids and screw on a ring. Add a little cold water to your canner to break the boil, to help prevent the jars from breaking. Use the jar grabber to place the jars into your water bath canner. If the jar does not feel hot on the bottom, temper your jars by dipping it in the water and removing it for a few seconds, and repeat. 

Once the water in the canner has come to a rapid boil, process for 15-35 minutes depending on your altitude. Add 5 minutes to processing time if your jars are not sanitized and were hand washed.

Pint: 0-1,000= 15 min, 1,001-6,000=20 min, Above 6,000=25 min

Quart: 0-1,000= 20 min, 1,001-3,000= 25 min, 3,001-6,000= 30 min Above 6,000= 35 min

Make sure you have at least an inch of water above the rims of the jars during the whole process of canning. Once they are done, remove and place on a towel. Try and lift straight up when removing the jars from the canner. Let sit for 24 hours before moving or disturbing the jars. Remove the rings and wash the jars to get off the sticky syrup. Store without rings just in case the jars become unsealed and then reseal because of the pressure of the ring. That can let in botulism. Leaving the rings off will show if a jar has come unsealed. 

Cupcake Wars Birthday Party

 Cupcake Wars Party Ideas

My daughter was having a Birthday party this summer and we were tossing around ideas of what to do. The invitations that I picked up had a Cupcake on them so I asked her if she wanted to do a Cupcake Party. She was excited about the idea so we went with that theme. 

I saw the idea of making it a baking contest here and I loved the idea. We only had a small group so we got 3 flavors for the cakes. We set out flavorings, sprinkles, food coloring, and toppings like Mini Oreos, Gummy Bears, Marshmallows, Mini M & M's, Miniature Reeces, Strawberries, and Chocolate Chips.  

When the kids first arrived, they decorated their Chef Hats. (Tutorial Below) I explained what we were doing so they could get an idea of what they wanted to make. They paired off into 3 groups depending on which cake batter they wanted to make. The groups made their cake batter, and then a portion of it was given to each child in separate bowls. Some of the kids put toppings in their cupcake batter and some of them added a lot of food coloring. While the cupcakes were baking, we played the game, Pin the Cherry on the Cupcake. 

You could make the game out of paper like I saw here, or you can just color it on poster board like I did. I cut out red circles and the kids each put their name on so we would remember where they pinned the cherry. The child who got closest, won a prize. 

 Once the cupcakes were cooled, the kids came back to decorate them. Each child had 3 cupcakes so they could decorate them differently if they wanted. When everyone was finished, we lined the plates up and each child got 2 tickets. They came up individually and voted for 2 different plates. That way they could vote for their own plate and then someone else. The winner of the decorating contest got a prize. 

We did a cupcake walk after the decorating contest. We put on the kids favorite music while they walked around. The first winners got a prize and then they went and ate one of their cupcakes. After cupcakes, we opened presents. 

We ran out of time for a cupcake toss, which is throwing a ball into the cupcake/muffin pans. I liked the idea of the cupcake punch out. You make a cardboard cupcake and have paper covered circles where the kids punch to get a prize. We ended up not doing that either. 

We had boys and girls at this party and they all had a blast at the party. The ages ranged from 6-11 and it lasted about 2 1/2 hours. It was definitely a success and I would do it again. 

How to Make Chef Hats

Supplies: Tape, Stapler, Tissue Paper, White Construction Paper, Scissors

Cut the White Construction paper in half, lengthwise and tape the 2 pieces together.  Now is the time for the kids to decorate the paper, if desired.

Lay down one piece of tissue paper (purchased in the gift aisle) 

It overlaps on the construction paper so you fold it in the middle so it lines up to the construction paper. Then tape the tissue paper down on the construction paper.  

I think I was running out of tape so I only made one taping. Fold over the tissue paper.   

Tape the tissue paper to the construction paper.  

Roll up the construction paper and fit to the child's head. Hold the size and take it off to staple the paper together. 

These hats held up very well for several weeks, so long as I sized it right and didn't make it too tight.