Children helping in the kitchen

From the time my boys were little, they would love to help Mama in the kitchen. They loved measuring ingredients, stirring, and later learning how to crack eggs. It is a magical place, the kitchen is. Now that my oldest is almost 12, he is inventing recipes. I completely encourage his creations and his experiments. This attitude of letting the boys loose in the kitchen is what Works for Me! Check out this link for more awesome ideas!
Here is Son1's best creation so far:

Honey Cinnamon Twists

1 flour tortilla

butter, softened

Cinnamon sugar

honey

Spread butter on the tortilla. Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar. Broil until the sugar begins to caramelize and get all bubbly. Remove from the oven. Drizzle honey over the tortilla. Roll up and enjoy!

My Lists

We are getting ready to go camping this next week. One thing that I have done in the past that I am very thankful for this year, is to write down right after our last trip what we took and needed more of, what we wished we had brought and what we did not need to bring. For example: we had to go out and buy more firewood last time. We ended up using 7 bundles of wood, so this time, we will bring seven bundles with us. We brought two boxes of graham crackers and only used one- we will leave one at home. We found that we needed warmer sleeping bags for two of the boys- a fact that I had forgotten, but my list told me! So we will make sure that they will have warmer sleeping bags before we set out.

I make these types of lists after most things that I do- birthday parties, major craft making days, parties, vacations, Christmas. You name it, I have a list for it. These lists tell me what I liked and didn't like, what I would or would not repeat. I am the mom of four boys- my brain can only remember so many details! This is what really works for me! For more great ideas check out We are THAT family.

Daycamping

We have a seven month old. We love to camp. Generally speaking these two items do not go well with each other. It is difficult for all of us to sleep in a tent normally, but add a baby who feels that it is his duty and privilege to wake up at his leisure during the night to eat, and you have non-compatibility. However, we have come up with a compromise: daycamping.

All the fun of camping minus the overnight stay. We had a fire, the roasting of hot dogs and the makings of smores. We had Frisbee tossing, dirt digging, slingshoting and general laziness. We had a great time. The baby was happy, we were happy.

The baby was passed around to his delight and did rather well. The fresh air wore him out and he took a nice nap.

We never cease to be in awe of the amazing world that the Lord has created. This beautiful vista was a great place to visit, but we had to make it a quick trip due to lightening in the area. We spotted several trees that had been struck by lightening.

This is Son#3. He is such a monkey. We daycamped next to many large boulders, and the first thing that he wanted to do was scramble up to the top of them. He is my heart in my mouth child. I always feel like my heart is in my mouth with the crazy stunts that he pulls off.

Son#2 and Son#3 would dig a hole all the way to China if we let them. Anytime we go outdoors, they will begin a new hole. This time, he discovered a rusty old beer can. You would have thought that he discovered gold. We had to work hard to get him to rebury it. (There is no trash service or cans here in bear country- you pack it out and I didn't want to pack that out!)

The weather cooperated enough that we were able to have lunch and dinner over the fire. To me, hot dogs are best roasted over the campfire.

This is what Works For Me. Check out what works for others here.

One of our Family hobbies

This might be a strange hobby to some, but being the mom of 4 NASCAR lovin' boys who live so very far away from all NASCAR tracks, we have come up with a hobby of sorts. We hear through the grapevine that a NASCAR car is in front of some store, or gas station. We will pile in the family van with our cameras and go take photos of the car and the boys. We have been lucky enough to get 8 or so. Today my sister-in-law texted me and told me that there was one in front of a local grocery store. This will be the first one with our newest little one. Here is a photo that I got today. This very cheap but enjoyable hobby.This is what works for us. Check out more great ideas here.

Free rootbeer floats at Sonic 6-3-09

I love root beer floats. The cool ice cream married to the flavorful root beer. So good! Today only at Sonic drive-in's they are giving away free root beer floats from 8 pm to 12am. I know what we are doing tonight! Start your summer off right . . . go get your free root beer float at Sonic tonight. This is most definitely works for me! Check out other great ideas here.

Summertime Money Saver

When the temperature starts to rise in the summer, I have a huge money drain. We get very thirsty. Going into a gas station for drinks when we are out running errands runs me close to $10 every time. A fast food pit stop for something cool and wet? You guessed it $7-$10. This adds up very quick. I have come up with a solution that works great for my gang. Keep a large cooler in the trunk of my van stocked with drinks of all kinds. I either dump ice in to keep cool, or if I am planning ahead, freeze a bunch of water bottles and use those as both a coolant and a drink when they have melted a bit. It is really so simple, but I have found that the more simple something is- the least likely I am to think of it! That is what Works for Me, check out Works for me Wednesday for more awesome ideas.

Laundry Schedules

As the mom of 4 boys, I will honestly tell you that they can make a whole mountain of laundry with out even trying! I was drowning in their dirty clothes.
One of my goals as a mom is to give my kids the skills that they will need as an adult. At some point my goal and my reality would have to meet. For some strange reason I doubted my children's ability to do laundry. But then a dear friend of mine shared with me that her children- slightly younger than mine- had been doing their own laundry for over a year! I don't know why I believed that my boys couldn't do that.
So, we have implemented a laundry day for each boy. They must wash, fold and put away their own clothing. Monday is Boy #1 (age 11), Tuesday is Boy #2 (age 9), Wednesday is Boy #3 (age 7), Thursday is Boy#4 (age 6 mo.) obviously I do his laundry for him, but in a few years . . . ., and Friday is Mom and Dad's day. Saturday is left over for sheets and towels.
It has been awesome to only have to worry about my laundry Thursday through Saturday. I had been doing a load or two or three every day of the week. This is much better for me and for my kids.
This is what works for me! Please visit We are THAT Family for more awesome ideas!