Our Elf is Holly, and my kids absolutely love seeing what adventures Holly gets into each night. After 5 years, coming up with new ideas for this elf becomes more than challenging!
Our elf doesn't really "move" per say! She remains on the kitchen island, and all of her antics happen there. I alternate between notes from Holly or Santa, and actually making the elf do something. Last night, our elf was playing Twister with a few friends that she made around the house.
This was a simple and easy thing for the elf to do, but I had to create some printables first! Fortunately, I am a graphic designer, and I love doing design work! Lucky for you, I am also generous, and want to make the elf job easier for other parents too!
Here are links to the printable that you can download.
I would like to make the purpose of this post CRYSTAL CLEAR, so I will start by saying this...
Shooting unarmed police officers in a different city and state from a few days after a horrible incident occured, JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE WHITE not only makes you a racist, it also makes you a coward and a terrorist.
Jesse Williams gave a speech at the BET awards after winning the "Humanitarian Award". In this speech he said "a system built to divide and impoverish us, cannot stand if we do." He goes on to say that "the burden of the brutalized, is not to comfort the bystander, let's just stop with all that." And he finishes up with something like "We have been floating this country on credit for centuries. And we are done watching and waiting while this invention called whiteness uses and abuses us, burying black people out of sight and out of mind while extracting our culture, our dollars, our entertainment like oil... black gold. Ghettoizing and demeaning our creations and then stealing them. Gentrifying our ingenues, and then trying us on like costumes, before discarding our bodies like rinds of strange fruit. The thing is though, just because we're magic, doesn't mean we're not real..."
When I heard this speech, I was a little stunned. I am not a racist. I never have been, and I never will be. I fully believe that everyone... of any skin color, sex, religious belief, sexual orientation, and any other differences... should have equal civil rights. However, this speech makes 'The White People" sound like a mass body. It lumps everyone into one category. If your skin is white, you abuse, you take, and you demean those who are black.
What is happening across the nation is horrifying and sad. Black deaths by police officers are incredibly high and number and MANY, and I many MANY, of them are completely senseless.
However, you cannot go to another city, another state, and shoot unarmed police officers JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE WHITE in the honor of a black man who was killed senselessly by a white police officer. This is terrorism. You are trying to establish fear by using violence and that is terrorism. This is not the way to stand against a system that you feel is built to divide and impoverish.
I personally think that we should be proud of Diamond Reynolds for her act of bravery. She did what needs to be done to stand against a system that was built to divide and impoverish. She thought fast and she brought attention to the senseless shooting and death of Philando Castile. This man had no record. This man lived a simple life, worked hard, and was pulled over for a broken tail light. His girlfriend's 4 year old daughter sat in the back seat, and Philando was shot FOUR times simply because he reached for his ID. Have you ever been pulled over? I don't care what color you are. The first thing a police officer asks for is your license and registration. There is absolutely no reason why this man is now dead. There is no reason why a 4 year old child watched this man perish in front of her. The police officer had no reason to shoot him whatsoever. Diamond did something that put her own life at risk. She live videoed it and the world watched in horror. THIS IS HOW YOU STAND AGAINST THE SYSTEM.
Today, 5 families will have to make funeral arrangements for their husbands, their fathers, their brothers, their sons. 12 officers were shot in an event that has been described by eye witnesses as an execution. These officers were unarmed. The gathering was peaceful. This shooting was anything but justified.
We have to stop killing each other because of the color of our skin. Stop assuming that all white people are racist. Stop assuming that all black people are dangerous. Stop assuming anything about anyone because of the color of their skin. Black and whites need to work together.
In 2015, 990 people were shot and killed by police. 494 of those shot and killed were WHITE. 258 of those killed were Black. 172 of those people killed were Hispanic. The statistics from last year show that this isn't a war against the Black population.
ALL LIVES MATTER.
Stand together, and stop assuming that all police officers are racists.
Click Here to go to the website for these statistics.
I am a simple mommy blogger, and I know that my opinions will not change the world alone. But I really hope that Americans can learn to stand together and fight for freedom and civil rights as a unit, and not divided.
I can't do it anymore! I can't continue to get on Facebook every day and watch as people call each other stupid, discriminative, racist, ignorant, "what's wrong with America".
My blog is my safe haven.
Here, I am allowed to have an opinion.
Here, I am not called names because of what I believe.
Here, I am not put down by strangers because of what I say.
Here, I can think in words, and organize my thoughts and feelings.
Here, I can be myself, and not worry about a Facebook judge and jury.
Here, I can speak freely without the fear of being verbally assaulted.
I would like to take this moment to encourage anyone who follows this blog, to read what I write without judgement, without accusation, and without the notion that you can go to war with me at any time. If you do not like my opinions, please feel free to unfollow me, permanently.
There is no need to leave nasty comments on posts, as I will remove them, and remove you.
There is no need to argue with me, or share my words with others while you call me names, and put me down. If you disagree with me, so be it. I am well aware that the world doesn't agree with me. I may not agree with you, but I will not attack you or your character for it. Keep your cyber bullying to yourselves please...
We are 10 days from embarking on a 12 hour road trip to Disney! I am excited, I am game, I am so ready for this, and I am abso-freaking-lutely terrified!
SO, I am doing what any PINTEREST junkie would do... prepping!
I made a Road Trip binder for Abbie, and I am oddly exciting about it, so I thought I would share!
My binder was put together using multiple pins from several bloggers, and I will list them at the end of this post.
This is Abbie's Binder!
Inside, I have a zipper pouch with several fun colored dry erase markers.
These markers all have eraser tops as well, so they serve double duty!
Every sheet inside is laminated, so she can write, erase, and rewrite all that she wants!
Trip Map, she can see going there and coming home where the trip will take us.
She can also mark along the way, and know when we are getting close.
The back of the map shows each state.
She can color in the name of the state, as we leave it!
Road Trip Bingo is on the following page,
and I have a sheet to use in the front seat as well!
The license plate game is a must!
Now, she can mark each state as we find them!
My little artist needed something to draw, so why not draw a tractor trailer!!!
Mirroring the page, is Restaurant I Spy, which is another way to keep her busy!!
She LOVES mazes, and has already solved this one,
but working on staying in the lines isn't such a bad thing!
We will do it over and over again, I am sure!
In the back pocket, is my Road Trip Bingo sheet for the front seat.
I am also going to include a good amount of notebook paper in the back, so she can doodle, color, write stories, or whatever she chooses! We have a bag of colored pencils for the trip as well. I have so many more ideas and plans, and look forward to sharing them with my readers as I finish them!!
Disney or Bust!
I redesigned a lot of these so they matched and looked how I wanted them too!
But the ideas and downloads are found at these links.
Road Trip Bingo, Design a Truck, and the License Plate Game - Poofy Cheeks
We usually do Family Night on Sundays, but this past Sunday was my birthday, and Derik surprised me with a birthday dinner! So, we did Family Night tonight, and it worked out so perfectly!! In fact, I would say this is my favorite Family Night so far!
Derik had today off, so after both kids were home from school, we started our lesson.
This week, we discussed how love can be contagious. Abbie asked prior to our start if she could lead prayer this evening. It made my heart smile, and her prayers were incredibly precious. We read scripture on love, and we discussed what our family would be like without love. It helped Abbie understand why love is so important.
After listening to the song this week, we headed into the kitchen for an activity about spreading love.
Each child had a paper towel with red hearts drawn on it. (You must use a washable marker for this.) They took turned dipping their towels into the water to SPREAD THEIR LOVE! They loved it.
Towels are ready to go.
Abbie is first to dip.
Watching the love spread!
Brady's turn!
Brady loved watching the love spread!
On Family Night, we usually have a "talent" segment. Each week the kids rotate performing or showing us something they want can do. It just so happened that tonight was "Student Showcase" at Abbie's school. We loaded Brady into the stroller and walked over to the school. We were able to go in her classroom and see all of her artwork on display and see her journal. We did a scavenger hunt around the school, and she earned a Homework Pass!! We visited the Art Room, Computer Lab, a few classrooms, the Cafeteria, and the Gym. We saw projects from many students on display, played math games, made a pop up card, and did a science experiment! It was a lot of fun, and we all enjoyed our tour of the school.
Abbie's lamb! She was very proud of her sentence!
Brady LOVED Abbie's class, and was reading letters and numbers off of the board!
Abbie's Pot of Gold... learning the colors of the rainbow!
Love these babies!
Brady and Paula in the computer lab.
Abbie making a pop up card with a little help from Mrs. Rader.
I think Abbie has a little crush on sweet Joshua!
After walking home from the school, we loaded into the car, and finished Family Night with some yummy frozen yogurt! Abbie chose the "Treat" for tonight, and her choice was perfect!
Happy Kids!
Family Night Ice Cream Treat!
"Yummy Ice Cream"!!
"Frozen Yogurt was the best idea"!!!
I love Family Night, and so does the rest of the crew! Already looking forward to our next Family Night, which unfortunately will be in 2 weeks. If you aren't doing Family Night... I highly recommend it! Make it a part of your weekly routine. It doesn't have to be complex. It just has to be about family!
Yes, Tacos are one of the easiest dinners to make, and you may think that there is nothing that can make tacos a 10! Maybe you love them so much already that you can't imagine them getting any better. Or, maybe you think "it's a taco, how good can it get?" Either way... there are 2 sure fire ways to make taco night, one of your favorite nights of the week!!! (And while margaritas do tend to make taco night more fun, it is not one of the 2 things I am talking about!!!)
1) Homemade Taco Seasoning may seem like something that you do not need to waste your time with, but it really is better! Here is the simple recipe, so you can have delicious homemade taco seasoning!
Use 2-3 Tbspns and 1/2-3/4 Cup Water for every pound of ground beef browned! Let it simmer until thickened (10min), and serve.
2) Homemade Pico De Gallo is my other taco must have! It is so simple, and yet adds so much fresh flavor to your tacos! I usually knock this out while the meat is simmering. Here is my recipe, and you will be shocked at the simplicity and effectiveness of it!
Homemade Pico De Gallo
2 Roma Tomato (Diced)
2 Slices of an Onion (All rings diced)
1 Lime (Squeezed)
Cilantro (Chopped)
Optional for Spice (Chop 1 fresh jalapeño, I recommend removing seeds and membrane before chopping as it can get INCREDIBLY hot! However, if you like to breathe fire... go nuts!)
Dice Tomato and Onion (and jalapeño), Mix with Chopped Cilantro, and squeeze lime juice over top! That is it. You will love it!
Heat your taco shells for 10 secs, 2 at a time in the microwave before filling with meat, shredded cheese, pico de gallo and any sauces. Taco night is bound to be your favorite night this week!!
I really enjoy our Family Nights, and I thought I would document our experiences on this journey! We are not a Mormon family, and while Family Home Evening is a Mormon concept, you don't have to be a Mormon to institute the value of family in your home!
I spent a lot of time, growing up, with my aunt and her family. They just so happen to be Mormon, and I am so grateful that I was able to experience Family Night as a kid with them!
Family Night gives me the opportunity as a mom, to sit down one on one with my family... no screens, no projects, no chores... JUST US.
We have a lesson plan, we pray, we sing, we play a game, the kids get a chance to showcase a talent, and we have a treat!
This week is our 3rd week doing Family Night, and our focus this week was EMOTIONS.
We discussed what emotions are, what we feel like when we experience them, and which emotion we need to focus on feeling more often... JOY!
Our Family Night Plans are pretty cut and dry!
We open with a song relating to the topic of the week, and pray.
Then we discuss as a family 3 things that we should focus on this week. Family Business can include things that are coming up this week that need to be discussed for scheduling or participation. But, it is usually 3 things that we need to keep our minds focused on in the week ahead.
Scripture & Lesson is next, and this is where we focus on the weekly topic. What does the bible say about our topic, and what exactly does our topic mean.
Testimony gives us the opportunity to explain how the topic relates to our family.
Closing Song, again is topic centered, and I try to find a song on youtube each week that we haven't heard before! The song that I found this week was actually a demo, and cut off VERY quick, so we improvised! We sang "There was a girl whose name was Abbie, and Happy was her motto... H-A-P-P-Y."
Then we close in prayer, praying specifically about the topic and our week ahead.
Finally we play a game, and enjoy a yummy treat!
This week's game was a printable that I found online!
This game was about emotions, and it's theme is the INSIDE OUT movie! My daughter LOVES that movie, so this was the perfect game for our topic. I printed it, cut it out, and we played it using pieces from our SORRY game.
Our treat tonight was leftover homemade SNOWNUTS! They were very yummy, and you can find the recipe for them HERE!
Family Night is something I look forward to every week, and while it felt a little cheesy at first, we are really getting into the swing of it quickly! My kids enjoy it, and I like that it is something we started early! I made a Family Night board this past week, so we can easily see who is responsible for each task every week!
I just love the way it turned out!
Hopefully others find Family Night as enjoyable as we do! I look forward to continuing this tradition as my kids get older. They will be able to help with every part, and hopefully continue this idea with their own families some day! See... Family Night is an EVERYBODY kind of thing!
One of the few family traditions that I clearly remember as a child is my mom making snownuts! Snownuts are a delicious homemade treat that was ONLY made when it snowed. As a child, it made snow days even more fun. As an adult, I see why my mom only made them when it snowed! It is VERY time consuming, and there is a lot of steps to the process... but BELIEVE ME, it is totally worth it in the end! First thing is first, you will need the following...
Doughnuts
3 3/4 to 4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 package ripid-rising dry yeast
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup very warm filtered water (130'F)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1 bottle of vegetable oil for frying
And let's get started! In your mixer bowl, add 3 Cups flour, sugar, salt, and rapid rise yeast.
This is the yeast that I use.
Mix dry ingredients with a wooden spoon,
and then add the melted butter and warm filtered water.
Put the dough hook onto your mixer, and start the mixer on low. Let it form a soft dough.
As the dough is mixing, add 1/4 Cup of flour in SMALL amounts.
Once the dough is "stiff", move it to a floured surface, and knead it. Add flour if needed until the dough is no longer sticky.
Smooth it into a ball.
Wash, dry, and LIGHTLY oil the mixing bowl.
Add the dough back to the bowl and roll it over so that the oil side is up.
Cover with a lint free cloth and place the bowl in the oven. Let the dough rise for 30-35 mins. It should have doubled in size. The oven should NOT be on. This simply provides a dry area for the dough to rise.
While the dough is rising, lightly oil 2 cookie sheets.
Move the dough to a floured surface and punch it down.
Pull off balls of dough,
roughly golf ball size.
Flour your hands slightly and roll it into a long line.
Fold the long line in half,
and twist it.
Place the twists on oiled pans,
and place the oiled pans into the oven to rise for another 30 mins.
While the twists are rising... add the ingredients for the glaze into a small mixing bowl and whisk.
Set up your assembly line... fryer, drying plate with folded paper towels, glazing bowl with tongs, and wire cooling rack with wax paper underneath it. I also put out an additional plate for the finished donuts.
Once the twists are ready, place 3 at a time in the fryer, and flip them over as needed! Lightly golden is what we are looking for.
Remove from the fryer and let them dry on the paper towel plate.
After adding 3 more donuts to the oil, begin dunking and flipping the donuts in the glaze. Try not to waste the glaze, you will need it all! DON'T FORGET ABOUT THE NEW DONUTS IN THE FRYER!!! You will need to keep a close eye on them.
Let the finished donuts cool on the wire rack.
And enjoy them :). This process takes about 2 solid hours! You can also do it without a fryer, use a large skillet, and make sure that you keep at least 2 inches of oil in the pan at all times. It is MUCH easier with a fryer, and to be completely honest... it is the only reason we have a fryer! Let the oil in the fryer COMPLETELY cool before moving it. We keep the bottle from the oil, and pour it back into that bottle to throw it away. We can usually get 2-3 uses from it before throwing it out. I made a double batch today, and I will throw that oil away!
