Squooshy-whooshies

Another clever idea found on Pinterest, made slightly easier by yours truly. Wacky Sacks made by Somewhat Simple are already quick and easy to accomplish following her instructions.

But, for those of us who are uncoordinated and/or have no hand strength, I have an alternate method for filling the balloon. By the way, this would work for filling a balloon with almost anything.

Supplies:

Empty plastic water bottle

Pencil with an eraser on one end

12" balloons

Play dough (I used one 4oz container per balloon)

The first step is to cut off the top part of the water bottle and unscrew the cap. Then stretch the balloon mouth over the mouth of the bottle.

I set the bottle on the top of an empty play dough container for balance.

Break off small-ish pieces of clay, roll and drop into the opening. You can do larger pieces rolled into snake shapes to start with, but as the balloon starts to fill, start making the pieces smaller. Large pieces will get stuck in the neck. Use the eraser end of the pencil to poke the clay down if it gets stuck in the neck of the balloon.

Every so often, I picked up the bottle and squeezed the clay together and pressed it as far toward the bottom of the balloon as possible. Near the end I pushed my thumb down on it to make a shallow well. This helped make room for the clay balls to roll into.

After all the clay was in, I squeezed out any lingering air and tied it off. A little permanent marker, and the little guys just came alive. From start to finish, it took me about half an hour to make two. The cost of supplies? 25 cents per container of clay and pennies for the balloons.

My dear Miss Audrey has dubbed these Squooshy-whooshies. Works for me. ;)

2 of 30: 3 Fears

If you haven't been following along from the beginning, start here.

2. Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and explain how they became fears.

1. I am afraid of abandonment. Physical, emotional, spiritual, all. I'm irrationally afraid that the people in my life will just up and leave me. I cannot pinpoint when this fear started, specifically. Maybe it was the day my (then) boyfriend told me he had to do the honorable thing and make sure his ex-girlfriend didn't still have feelings for him and he for her. He left to go talk to her and see if there was anything left of their past relationship. (He came back and explained that there wasn't anything but friendship left with her, but I cried in abject fear the entire time he was gone.) 

The strangest thing about this fear is that I don't have a problem with being alone and I am completely content with the idea of being a hermit. Is it that I like to be able to withdraw myself from others with the knowledge that I can always come back when I'm ready? Or, perhaps, it is a way to protect myself (i.e. If I leave you, you can't leave me)? Either, or, both or neither? I think some self-analysis is in order, here.

2. I am afraid of the possible deaths of my immediate family; specifically, my husband and children. I can hear myself screaming uncontrollably in my head when I think about it. I have been a worst-case-scenario thinker for quite a long time, perhaps all my life. I guess, somewhere in my little noggin, I reason that if I think of the worst possible outcome, I will be happy with even the mediocre possibilities. I am also pleasantly surprised when things turn out well. It isn't that I'm afraid of what will happen to them, but more what I will do without them. I suppose it just goes back to the abandonment issue.
A related note: I'm afraid of dying slowly or painfully. When I go, I don't want to feel it or even be aware of it. As a teenager, I used to say, "Drop a bomb in my lap. Just a split second of "Wha-?!" and then it's done." I'm not afraid of the after-life, just what I'll have to go through to get there.

3. I am afraid of evil spirits, ghosts, presences, whatever you may call them. I can logically reason that they really can't do serious harm to me. But, that's what a fear is, right? An illogical emotional response to danger or the unknown. Some people welcome spirits into their lives, but I was taught that, unless a spirit has a special message from God, they have no business being involved in our daily lives. I was taught that good spirits are much too busy to be spending time frightening us.
I have acquired this fear over time, based on several experiences I've had. They started out benignly enough; a mischievous little girl observing us while we slept and then running into another room when I noticed. My prayers stopped her invasion of our home, but I could never go into that other room again except during the day.
This eventually changed into a chilling experience in which a shadowy figure watched me from the doorway of my room when I was home alone. Again, my prayers removed the presence from our home. A few months later, this same shadowy figure actually got nose to nose with my husband while he slept. He woke with a start and quickly insisted that it leave. We later learned that there were people in our apartment complex toying with black magic and were probably aware to some degree of what they were doing.
The most recent one was where we are currently living. Within the first few months of us moving in, my husband and I started hearing male and female voices coming from the direction of our children's room. Our children had trouble sleeping and did not want to spend any time in the room. My husband had nightmares as well. Together, we dedicated our living space (a dedication is a special blessing) and have not had any trouble since.
I think the last one was most frightening to me because it involved my children.

Wow, this blog is really heavy and serious... maybe I'll post a fun, family blog next.. just to keep things light. ;)

Next Time:  Describe your relationship with your parents.

Preschool Fashion

Generally speaking, I let my kids dress themselves. The only time we insist they change into something else is if weather requires something warmer/cooler/etc.
As such, the color, print and style combinations can be rather entertaining.
For example:

Note the plaid skirt that can barely be seen under the long shirt. The socks are Hello Kitty, from Christmas and the slippers, interestingly enough, match the shirt....ish.

On a side note, Audrey had recently received her first major haircut. She'd had trims in the past, but never a full-blown massacre of inches. Before the cut, her hair was almost to her waist. I think I cried a little in my heart. She does look really grown up in this picture, though. (If you ignore the clothes, that is.)

Happy Blogging!

1 of 30: 20 Random Facts

If you haven't been following along from the beginning, start here.

1. List 20 random facts about yourself. 

1. I am the sixth child out of seven. Fourth girl.

2. I once dyed my hair blue.

3. The night I met Ben was when I had decided to finally give up on the dating game. Go figure.

4. I should have met Ben years before I did. We had mutual friends and went to a lot of the same dances and activities. Ben told me once it was probably best I didn't meet him as a teenager. He said I wouldn't have liked him. :)

5. We kissed the night we met. Yes, that is true.

6. I was almost an April bride, but ended up being a June bride against my will... funny how life works out like that.

7. I am an aspiring novelist. I have a problem with starting projects and not finishing them, but I am determined to have a completed book sometime in the next year! Even if it kills me.

8. I have participated in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writer's Month) the past three Novembers. I have "won" the last two years. In spite of having won, I have not completed a novel. This is due to my long-windedness.

9. I don't have good luck. I don't have bad luck either... I have neutral luck. I never win anything, but I frequently don't really lose either. That doesn't make much sense, but it's true.

10. I was called the "Animal Queen" by members of my family when I was growing up. I knew a LOT about animals and loved everything that could be classified as an animal. I picked up many creepy-crawlies with my bare hands. I could also mimic a cougar roar accurately.

11. I wanted to be a Veterinarian when I was a child. When I saw a video of a surgery when I was about 17, I quickly changed my mind about my chosen career path.

12. I love music and it inspires my writing. I can identify several songs as the initial inspiration for stories.

13. I refuse to let my children watch certain children's programming. Yo Gabba Gabba, The Teletubbies and Barney are just a few that I won't let them watch. Not because there's anything really wrong with those shows, but because they drive me up the wall.

14. I am a religious person. I have very strong beliefs, but I frequently have difficulty sharing them with other people. This is mainly because I don't want to share something so important to me with someone who might not treat it with respect.

15. I want to homeschool my kids but I often have trouble following through on projects. See #7. I don't want my kids' education to suffer simply because I suffer from intermittent slacker disease.

16. I love people unconditionally. I also forgive easily. Because of this, I get hurt a lot. Once you have hurt me, I may forgive you, but I won't forget any time soon.

17. My mother told me that I was a "why?" child while I was growing up. As it turns out, both of my kids are also "why?" children. You would think it would make me especially patient with them. You would think.

18. I'm a procrastinator and avoid doing things I dislike for much longer than I should. On the flip side, I will eat the things I hate the most at dinner first and save what I like best for the last.

19. I don't sing in the shower. I work out dialogue for my stories.

20. I do like to sing, though. I am currently involved in a family singing group and have performed on and off for the last (almost) three years.

Next Time: Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and explain how they became fears.

30 Things

Another random Pinterest find, I thought it would be fun to try this blogging exercise.
The idea is to post something about myself each day (or in between my other posts....) according to the list I found on Hopes and Dreams blog. The invitation has been extended to play along and I'm taking it! You can too!
The perfect thing about this list is that it guarantees me at least 30 more blog ideas! Yay!

THE LIST:

1. List 20 random facts about yourself.
2. Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and explain how they became fears.
3. Describe your relationship with your parents.
4. List 10 things you would tell your 16 year-old self, if you could.
5. What are the 5 things that make you most happy right now?
6. What is the hardest thing you have ever experienced?
7. What is your dream job, and why?
8. What are 5 passions you have?
9. List 10 people who have influenced you and describe how.
10. Describe your most embarrassing moment.
11. Describe 10 pet peeves you have.
12. Describe a typical day in your current life.
13. Describe 5 weaknesses you have.
14. Describe 5 strengths you have.
15. If you were an animal, what would you be and why?
16. What are your 5 greatest accomplishments?
17. What is the thing you most wish you were great at?
18. What has been the most difficult thing you have had to forgive?
19. If you could live anywhere, where would it be and why?
20. Describe 3 significant memories from your childhood.
21. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and what would you do with it first?
22. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years? 15 years?
23. List your top 5 hobbies and why you love them.
24. Describe your family dynamic of your childhood vs. your family dynamic now.
25. If you could have dinner with anyone in history, who would it be and what would you eat?
26. What popular notion do you think the world has most wrong?
27. What is your favorite part of your body and why?
28. What is your love language?
29. What do you think people misundertand most about you?
30. List 10 things you would hope to be remembered for.

Valentine's Day Decorations and Cards

Okay, I know it's late, but I just couldn't help posting these super cute pictures of the Valentine's Day decorations and cards we and our sweet kids did this year. Keep in mind that, up until this year, I have done any and all decorations by myself. Boy, am I glad that I decided to let the kidlets join in this year!

 Of course, I've been a member of Pinterest for a few months now. I'm pretty sure I found these ideas there, but I don't remember now. If I figure it out, I'll give the references.

We picked up these cute paper doilies in the dollar bins at Target. Then we went to town with water colors. The kids had a lot of fun (except for a major meltdown by the youngest). After they dried, we hung them up.

So cute and fun. Even better, they fit into a plastic baggy so that I can save them for next year!

The day before Valentine's Day, I had the kids make cards for their dad.

For this craft, the kids colored a heart cut out of sandpaper.

After they were done coloring, I put the sandpaper face-down on cardstock, put a towel on top and ironed it like crazy. The wax melted right onto the cardstock. (If I had to do it again, I'd have made the kids color the sandpaper darker so the picture came out clearer, but they were cute anyway.)

Audrey wrote her own note, with my help. I only had to tell her what letter to write and she did the rest.

I wrote the note for Henry, and had him put his own signature down on the bottom right. ;)

After they were done, I just couldn't throw away the sandpaper hearts, so I glued them back to back and strung them up with the garland.

Audrey's

Henry's

Cute!

Happy Blogging!

Boiecheze Sandwich

Per my mother's request, I would like to share a little anecdote with you special readers this evening.

I realized while I was putting this blog together that I have no recent pictures of my children. Bad Mom!

I will rectify this atrocity as soon as possible.

I made french fries and grilled-cheese sandwiches for dinner tonight. The grilled cheese sandwiches have a special recipe (my mother's secret ingredient) that make the taste sortof ka-pow in your mouth; perhaps I will share it with you some day.

As we were eating, my little girl "why" child turned to me and said:

"Mom, why are they called 'grill-cheese'?"

To which I replied, as I often have to when my children ask these types of questions: "Because they are."

Please note that I have explained the term grilled cheese to her before, but she just likes to drive me crazy with repeated questions.

My son, who hadn't appeared to be paying any attention at all, said:

 "I'm eating a Boiecheze Sandwich!"

Grammy's face rather scrunched up in confusion as she turned to look at him and asked me, "What did he say?"

I clarified with a small smile on my face. "He said he is eating a Boy Cheese Sandwich."

It took about a second and a half to sink it, but my parents were soon laughing with delight. Considering how difficult it is to amuse either one of my parents, that's quite a feat.

That's my boy.

I suppose from here on out, we shall have to call them Gyrlcheze and Boiecheze Sandwiches.

Happy Blogging!