Our Exciting Tot School Find!

This morning we headed to Goodwill for the 50% off last Saturday of the month. (Our local Goodwill has this sale store-wide.)

I was super excited when I found these trays. They are perfect for Tot Trays and lots of other activities as the kids get older. Although I would prefer having various colors the total price for all 8 ended up being only $1.26 including tax!

Have you found great and inexpensive teaching tools at thrift stores, yard sales, etc.? 

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List It, Link It ~ My Homeschool To-Do List for this Weekend

Items I Need to Print

1. Lowercase Color by Number Pages for Emahry and Jonathan

2. Pre-writing Tracing Pages for Emahry and Jonathan (coming soon to our Free Printables page)

3. Selected Tot School Printables from 1+1+1=1

Items to Laminate

1. Weather Graph for Calendar Time

2. Color Craze 2 File Folder Game

What's on your to-do list?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Okay everyone…it’s your turn now!!! You may link to any type of family friendly list. 

Please follow the guidelines below.

1. Link to your actual list, not your blog's home page, so we can find it easily.

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Okay, are you ready? Start linking and be sure to visit some other blogs when you get a chance.

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New Free Printables Page

I've started making some printable to use with Emahry and Jonathan during "school time." These are now available in one location and are even easier to download for your own use.

Simply click on the Free Printables label under our blog title. Right now I've only added the Lowercase Color by Number Printables I have completed which look like the pictures below. So far you can download a-j and m. I'll be adding the other letters as I complete them.

I have a few more different sets of printables in the works that will be added as I complete them.

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$1 or Less for Cute Circular Tins

Today I stopped by Walmart to see if I could find any good after Easter deals. I was able to snatch up a large box of springtime foam stickers for only $2. I also grabbed some cute cupcake wrappers and matching flower picks for only $1.

Then I found these adorable circular tins marked down to $1. They came filled with a baggie of gummy bunnies (that will be shared with college students who can more easily eat whatever they want and still wear their favorite jeans).

Personally, I didn't care about the candy, I just wanted the cute little tins. They are about 5 inches in diameter, 1 inch high and have a 3 1/2 inch clear plastic (vinyl) window on the lid. I'm thinking these would be a great way to display many small gifts.

Here are some ideas:

Set of Coasters

Names of Jesus Garland for Christmas

Felt Circle Garland like this one

Happy Birthday Banner like this one

Handmade Scrapbooking Tags and Journal Cards

One BIG cookie

Jewelry

I'm going to try to check back this weekend to see if they've been marked down to 50 cents. If there are still any left I'll probably pick up a few more for that price.

What about you? What would you use these tins for?

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Endless Gifts

 

#330. Folded and stacked washcloths, our three-year-old's newest household responsibility.

#331. Emahry and Jonathan still enjoying their "new" guitar, even though 3 strings are missing. This might be the best 50 cents we've spent in a long time.

#332. Pajama clad sisters.

What are you thankful for today?

Will Also be Contributed To: Gratituesday, intentional gratitude Works for Me!, Things I Love Thursday, Finer Things Friday

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Good Reads ~ April 23rd

May all your wanderings be blessed!

:: Do you desire to "be there" for your children? I thought so. Please read Amy's post on All Needing Something. I love the last line, "I give as much as I can and then trust God for the rest."

:: I think this is a great (sneaky academic) way to keep kid entertained in the kitchen without necessarily "helping" mom. Regina @ Chalk in My Pocket shares a wonderful tutorial for making quilting magnets. These will definitely be added to my "need to make when I have a few crafting moments" list.

:: I'd also love to make the kids a rotating art gallery display wall like this one at Less-Than-Perfect Life of Bliss. Check out the post for a great tutorial and some tips to creating a gallery on the cheap.

Linked to Simply Staci's Saturday Stumbles.

Any good reads to share this week? Please, leave a link in your comment.

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Mother's Day Gift Idea

Looking for a beautiful but useful Mother's Day gift? Why not get all the girls matching aprons this year. The selection from Flirty Aprons is amazing and their quality is outstanding! Visit Flirty Aprons for more information on how you can surprise the moms in your life with one of this beautiful aprons.

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Flats and Handwashing Challenge

Our family is excited about participating the the upcoming Flats and Handwashing Challenge organized by Kim at Dirty Diaper Laundry. 

Kim was very concerned, as we are, about the recent stories of low income families choosing to reuse disposable diapers so they could purchase food for their families. There have been cases where babies have developed dangerous infections due to being left in a disposable diaper too long or being placed in a used disposable diaper.

This challenge was started to raise awareness of the extremely frugal option of flat diapers. The hand washing aspect is to show that even families who do not own a washer and dryer can successfully cloth diaper their babies for very little upfront cost.

We are participating in this challenge so that we can help spread the word about how inexpensive cloth diapering can be, even for those who do not own a washer and dryer.

I also have to admit that I am a little excited about hand washing diapers for a week. Call me weird, but it's bringing out my Laura Ingalls side. (I'm sure that would not be the case if I was attempting to wash all of our laundry for a week, but a bucket of flats and covers each day is much more manageable.)

Tim has already agreed to make me a basic camp style bucket washer to use during this challenge. I'm super excited, though not quite excited enough to attempt washing all of laundry this way.

We are pleased to introduce you to our three sponsors for this event, Baby Belle Bottoms, Swaddlebees and Baby Bunz & Co.

 

  

Each of these great companies will be providing our family with flat diapers in order to participate in this challenge. They will also be offering a giveaway to our readers during the week of the challenge, May 23-30.

We are looking for one more sponsor for this challenge who is willing to send our family a set of flats to use for this challenge and also offer a set to our readers as a giveaway prize. If you are interested please leave a comment or email us.

Visit Dirty Diaper Laundry to see who else is taking the Flats & Handwashing Challenge.

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Endless Gifts

 

#322. Delicious new recipes that the whole family loves.

#323. Days with longer sunshine.

#324. Swings.

#325. First carousel rides.

#326. An entire household with no sickness!

#327. A small 50 cent guitar that the two oldest LOVE.

#328. New umbrellas for warm spring rains.

#329. Little girls dancing.

What are you thankful for today?

Will Also be Contributed To: Gratituesday, intentional gratitude Works for Me!, Things I Love Thursday, Finer Things Friday

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Menu Plan Monday ~ April 18th

Review of Last Week's New Recipes:

Our Best Bites

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos: These were a huge hit. We made them with the small sized flour tortillas and served them with sour cream and this awesome creamy lime cilantro dressing.

I didn't have any green onions for the taquito filling so I simply left them out. I also used lime juice instead of freshly squeezed.

Tim and I loved these taquitos. The kids also enjoyed their portions with a little extra sour cream to cut the spiciness.

If I were making these for company of to deliver to friends I would make them with half pepperjack cheese and half regular cheddar or maybe even all cheddar to help cut down on the spiciness.

Our Best Bites

This creamy lime cilantro dressing goes really well with these taquitos and also makes a great compliment to the meal on top of a tossed salad.

I omitted the hot sauce entirely and there was still a little kick from the green salsa. I also used 6 teaspoons of this homemade ranch dressing mix.

Next time I'm going to try to make this dressing with kefir or greek yogurt to get rid of the mayo.


This Week's Menu

Monday: 
Tim's working, so it's just the kids and me.

Creamy Mac and Cheese with leftover shredded Chicken
Baby Carrots

Tuesday:

Homemade Cheese Pizza ~ using Tammy's delicious thin crust recipe (made with whole wheat bread flour)

Tossed salad

Wednesday:
Busy day with grocery shopping so Tim's grilling.
Easy Tilapia with Wine and Tomatoes
Brown rice

Tossed salad

Thursday:

Pasta with Red Sauce

Tossed Salad

Friday:

Taco Salad

Saturday: 

Breakfast for Dinner, Just the kids and me
* German Apple Pancake ~ this isn't a new recipe, but I'm going to try it with kefir this time around, so I'll share the results next week.

Sunday:

No traditional Easter Dinner here
Tim's Grilling Night 
I'm thinking it's time for burgers :)

* Denotes new recipes to be reviewed at the beginning of next week's Menu Plan Monday post.


If I have some extra time this week I'll be making another batch of Creamy Chicken Taquitos to place in the freezer and share with neighbors. I think I'll try mixing pepperjack and cheddar this go around.

Sharing alongside hundreds of other meal plans at I'm an Organizing Junkie.

What are you cooking this week? I'd love some new recipe links!

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Final Batch of Alphabet Craze Winners!

Second Story Window Printable Games ~ Lydia @ Treasures Of Home Boutique

Sew What Fabrics (1 Yard or Panel) ~ Katelynn @ Kate's Corner

Katy Made Creations (Alphabet Collage Poster) ~ Sarah @ A Real Housewife of NYC
Magens Bay (Alphabet Memory Matching Game) ~ Lauren @ Sanity Sold Separately
Me & Marie Learning ($10 Gift Certificate) ~ Michelle @ Michelle's Charm World
Nice Buttons (Alphabet Magnet Set) ~ Amylynn
Alphatots (Things that Go Alphabet Poster) ~ mamajhaha
Fun by the Yard (1 Yard of choice) ~ Melanie
Nauvoo Quilt Co. (1/2 Yard of choice) ~ Ashley
Our Humble A{Bowe}d (Alphabet Tree Print) ~ Liz @ From Chalkboards to Strollers

Congratulations to all of these winners! You should have received an email from us tonight (please check your spam folder if you don't see one).


Thank you to everyone who entered! You helped to make our Alphabet Craze event a success!

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Good Reads ~ April 16th

May all your wanderings be blessed!

:: I know our kiddos would love this Easter Fun Sensory Bin from Carisa @ 1+1+1=1.

:: I definitely needed this reminder from Rachel. How Then Can We Change @ No. 17 Cherry Tree Lane

:: This Celebration Balloon Wreath is definitely getting saved in my Evernote account. I can see this being made for our next birthday celebration. The best part is that it will store easily to be used for other celebrations, too!

Linked to Simply Staci's Saturday Stumbles.

Come across any good reads this week? Leave a link, I'd love to read them, too.

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Our Three Stair Steps

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Kefir in Our Kitchen

Our family has been making our own kefir for a couple months now and we love it! I first read about kefir on Tammy's website, Tammy's Recipes, in her post All About Kefir. As I read more information on How to Make Homemade Kefir and watched her Video Tutorial I was increasingly interested.

Kefir is similar to a drinking-style yogurt. It contains beneficial yeast as well as friendly ‘probiotic’ bacteria found in yogurt. The naturally occurring bacteria and yeast in kefir combine symbiotically to give incredible health benefits when consumed regularly. Kefir is also filled with valuable vitamins and minerals and contains easily digestible complete proteins.

For those who are lactose intolerant, kefir’s beneficial yeast and bacteria provide lactase, an enzyme which consumes most of the lactose left after the culturing process. This makes kefir easy to digest even for those who cannot drink milk!

I won't go into the steps of making your own homemade kefir because Tammy does a wonderful job walking kefir newbies through the entire process.

photo credit: Tammy's Recipes

Since we've had our own kefir grains we've tried Tammy's Strawberry Banana Kefir Smoothies, Fluffy Kefir Pancakes and Smooth and Creamy Maple-Sweetened Kefir. We've loved every recipe!

photo credit: Tammy's Recipes

photo credit: Tammy's Recipes

We even have begun our own kefir experiments by substituting kefir for buttermilk and milk in many recipes like these Peanut Butter Pancakes and this Buttermilk Syrup (which actually boiled too long and ended up making delicious Kefir Caramels once refrigerated).

We've now been able to pass some of our growing kefir grains to one of our neighbors who has also been enjoying the benefits of fresh homemade kefir. In fact we have some kefir ice cream from our neighbor waiting  in our freezer to be devoured.

photo credit: Tammy's Recipes

If you're looking to purchase some kefir grains to begin making your own homemade kefir they can be found online at Cultures for Health under Starter Cultures.

These are dried milk kefir grains (they also carry water kefir grains). These grains can be rehydrated within 5 to 7 days and will continue to make kefir and grow just like fresh kefir grains.

Remember that if you purchase kefir grains you can quickly recover your initial cost by the money you'll save making your own kefir as opposed to buying store bought kefir. Also your grains will continue to grow and you'll be able to bless others with your extra kefir grains.

Some More Kefir Links:
Health Booster: Kefir @ Passionate Homemaking
Video Blog: How to Make Coconut Milk Kefir @ Keeper of the Home
How to Make Coconut Milk Kefir @ Passionate Homemaking
Strawberry Coconut Milk Kefir Frozen Dessert Recipe @ The Healthy Cooking Coach
How to Make Coconut Kefir @ Just Making Noise

Homemade kefir is definitely a Finer Thing.

Have you ever tried kefir? What about making your own kefir? We'd love some new kefir recipes if you have any to pass on.

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List It, Link It ~ Spring & Easter Themed Sensory Bin Ideas

Sensory bins are a great way to allow children to explore using multiple senses. These bins are also open-ended play and encourage children to use their own creativity. If you have toddlers, pre-schoolers or young children at home I would love to encourage you to give sensory bins a chance!

Spring & Easter Themed Sensory Bins

Click on each blog title for more information, ideas and inspiration.

{All photos are the property of each respective blog.}

1. 1+1+1=1

2. Snails and Puppy Dog Tails

3. The Princess and the Tot

4. Jada Roo Can Do

5. Mama May i Blog

6. Growing Up Our Way ~ Birdseed Sensory Bin

7. From A to Z

8. Pink and Green Mama

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Okay everyone…it’s your turn now!!! You may link to any type of family friendly list. 

Please follow the guidelines below.

1. Link to your actual list, not your blog's home page, so we can find it easily.

2. Let us know what list you are sharing in your name/title, for example: Allyson @ A Heart for Home (Ten Favorite Children's Books) 

3. In your list post, link back here so that your readers can come join the fun. Feel free to copy & paste our List It, Link It Button into your post. (Just copy the text in the box below the button, click on the "Edit HTML" tab for your post and paste it there.)



<center><a href="http://a-heart4home.blogspot.com/search/label/List%20It%20Link%20It" target="_blank" ><img border="0" src=" http://i443.photobucket.com/albums/qq160/aHeart4home/Blog/ScreenHunter_41Oct301026-2.jpg"/></a></center>

If you don’t have a blog, please feel free to share your lists in the comments section!

Okay, are you ready? Start linking and be sure to visit some other blogs when you get a chance.

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Mamapedia: Full Year of National Geographic Little Kids Magazine for as low as $7!

Today (Thursday) first time Mamapedia buyers can get a Full Year of National Geographic Little Kids Magazine (Regular Price: $24) for only $7 with coupon code NATGEO3.

If you've already purchased a Mamapedia Sweet Deal, then you won't be able to use the coupon code personally, since they are for new buyers only, BUT you can still use coupon code EASTER10 to get 10% off the Mamapedia Sweet Deal price of $10. That will make the full year's subscription only $9!

All of our children love animals, so we will definitely be grabbing one of these sweet deals for our own family!

Magazine subscriptions like this also make great gifts for those lovely little people in your life!

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Earn Up to Five Free Books From Scholastic

Your children (ages 5-12 years) can complete math and reading worksheets to earn up to five free books from Scholastic per household.

Our oldest is a little young for these, but I know many of you have children in these age groups. Also, you can choose from 7 different books in each age category. I've read many of these books and would highly recommend them, so I'm sure you'll find something you and your child will like.

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Wordless Wednesday: Outdoor Exploration

It all started out harmless enough...

Then she got a little braver...

Yucky!

Linked to Wordless Wednesday posts here, here, here, here and here.


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Lowercase Color By Number Alphabet

I recently started creating a set of lowercase color by number sheets to use with Emahry.

I uploaded what I've completed so far to Scribd so that others can use them as well. I have the letters a through j uploaded already and will be uploading the rest as I complete them.

Simply download each letter and print them for your child(ren) to color.

You could also print them on cardstock, laminatethem and have your children use dry erase markersor dry erase crayonsso each page could be reused.

Please, let me know if you have any questions or problems downloading the pages.

Also, I'd love to hear from you if you download these and use them with your child(ren). Thanks!

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