How many pictures does it take to get a good one?

How many pictures does it take?

1. Everyone, Smile...

2. Okay smile and look at the camera...

3. Did anybody hear me?

 4. Lil Bro heard something...What could it be?

 5. AHHHHH, A DOG!!! Don't eat us!

 6. Is he gone?

 7. I think he is gone....

 8. Phew.  He's gone!

 9. Almost a good shot!

10. Drum Roll Please....

TaDaa!

Project of the Week - Cookie Sheet Volcanoes

Cookie sheet volcanoes

1. Mix vinegar and food coloring to your desired color.

2. Pour Baking Soda all over a cookie sheet.

3. Use a medicine dropper to make volcanoes!

 This is great!

Use the cookie sheet baking powder and pour it into a bowl of vinegar.  Make sure you have a pie plate under it!

We have to make more!

We have to show this to Big Sis and Daddy!

Memory Maker: Ding Dong Ditching!

If you know what Ding Dong Ditching is, well, you may be surprised that we taught our kids to Ding Dong Ditch last weekend!  Let's just say it was so much fun and they are still talking about it.  One of our favorite books is Nothing Ever Happens on Our Block by Ellen Raskin.  There are 3 kids who ring a doorbell a few times and the lady keeps answering but no one is there.  The mail man rings the doorbell and the lady dumps a bucket of water out the upstairs window to teach the kids a lesson, but she gets the mailman instead!

The kids loved that book so we decided to Ding Dong Ditch The family at the hotel last weekend.
We did it the nice way and left a treat!

By the time we Ding Dong Ditched the last relatives room we had added a bunch of cousins!  I wish you could have been there to hear the little feet running and all of the laughter in the hotels corridors!

P.S. It is impossible to keep up with these kids as they ran their fastest to get away

 before anyone opened the door!

I originally saw this idea HERE at Poppies at Play!

While there check out their Parade of Homes for some inspiration!

Tips to Save Some Cents: At a Hotel

When traveling money can add up pretty quickly.  We have come up with a few ways to save a bit!

1. Pack food and snacks to eat in your hotel room. You can save $5.00 per kid on breakfast if you pack it!

This breakfast cost less that $0.75 per serving.  I even splurged on OJ in a box, premade muffins, and applesauce in individual servings.  I did get everything here on sale and used coupons so it came out pretty cheap. This saved us close to $5.00 a kid!

2. Do not pay $15.00 for an in room movie!  Bring or borrow a car TV or dvd player and a movie you already have.  Don't forget the cord to attach it to the TV! You can also pick up a movie from Redbox or Blockbuster Box for free.  There are usually rental boxes close to wherever yo Check out CouponDad by clicking  for Blockbuster HERE and Redbox HERE.  I never pay to rent because there are always movie codes.  Another tip:  If you want to rent 2 dvd's check them out in 2 different transactions with 2 different movie codes!

3. Pack toys and small games to play in the car and hotel room.  We like cards, wax bendy stix, a few babies/barbies, several books including a BIG collection that has lots of stories. Don't forget coloring books and crayons!

4. Go and explore the hotel.  Find the pools, is there an aquarium, courtyard, or a playground?  Does the hotel have a dining room that has complimentary coffee,tea, hot chocolate, and fruit 24 hours?

5. Pack snacks in the car to toss back to the kids.  We usually pack animal crackers, prewashed and cut fruits and veggies, pretzels, sippy cups, hulless popcorn, etc.  I have also tossed a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter in as well. 

Leave a comment below.  What do you do to save on a trip?

Recipe of the Week - Baked Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

Baked Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

Total Recipe cost: $2.77

Servings Per Recipe: 6-8

Cost per serving: $0.46

Prep time: 10 min. Cook time: 45 min. Total: 55 min.

INGREDIENTS COST

1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin purée $1.00

1/2 cup brown sugar $0.16

2 large eggs $0.32

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice $0.10

1/2 tsp salt $0.03

3/4 tsp baking powder $0.03

1/2 tsp vanilla extract $0.14

1.5 cups milk $0.56

2.5 cups dry old-fashioned oats $0.43

TOTAL $2.77

I substituted Steel Cut oats (for the health benefit) and it added over 1 1/2 hours of cooking time! 

STEP 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin purée, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and baking powder until smooth. Whisk in the milk (and yogurt if using).

STEP 2: Mix the dry oats into the pumpkin mixture. Coat an 8x8 (or similar sized) baking dish with non-stick spray. Pour in the pumpkin oat mixture. Cover with foil and bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, removing the foil after the first 30 minutes.

STEP 3: Serve hot right out of the oven or refrigerate until ready to serve. Can be eaten cold or reheated. Top with milk, maple syrup, whipped cream, or nuts.

It is YUMMY!



The kids still prefer the original Steel Cut Oats with Blueberries and Flaxseed recipe (Click here for the recipe!)  the best!

I found this recipe at a SUPER great website called Budget Bytes!

Frugal Find - Healthy Microwave Popcorn in a Bag

Healthy way to make Microwave Popcorn!

After hearing that buying microwave popcorn for your family can potentially harm them because of the chemicals that it contains, we started to make popcorn in the big pot on the stove.  We love popcorn during our family nights (Lil Bro still eats hulless because of the choking hazard!) and sometimes stove top popcorn takes a bit too long when were playing games.  I came across a recipe on line and tried it out! It worked fabulous!

Here are a few reasons I backed away from using store bought microwave popcorn.

Popcorn bags are coated with a fluoride-containing polymer to reduce sticking; when this polymer starts to break down, it generates perfluorooctanoic acid, which has been associated with cancer, as noted in a 1993 article in the "Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine." However, the chemical hasn't been linked to lung cancer, only to prostate and liver cancer.

There is a lung disease risk associated with microwave popcorn. The flavoring in the popcorn contains a chemical called diacetyl, which increases your risk of developing a lung condition called bronchiolitis obliterans, often colloquially called "popcorn lung."

Read more about it here 

Directions:

Pour 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels into a lunch bag.

Fold the bag closed.

Put it in the microwave on the popcorn setting or microwave until you hear a few seconds in between pops.

When it is finished put popped popcorn into a bowl.  I had the following amount of kernels left so I put them back in the bag and re microwaved!  After the second popping there were only a few kernels left!

When Big Sis was little Aunt B hid M&M's in the bottom of the bowl and it was a HUGE surprise!  I now carry on the tradition and make popcorn a super fun!  By buying a big bottle of kernels you only pay a few cents for a night time treat + adding a sweet treat that is on sale plus a coupon you still have only paid a nickle or so!

Family night turned into GIRLS NIGHT!

The girls were loving the laid back movie night with a treat while

Landon slept through and Daddy was working on his homework!

Enjoy!