Silas' Airplane

Silas came to me in much excitement to show me this airplane he made, all on his own. It has eyes, so it's just like Jay Jay (notice his shirt).
Seeing his creation makes me marvel at how much kids learn when they're "just playing". Silas is learning to be creative by taking a pile of blocks and turning them into a recognizable object. He's gaining confidence by conceptualizing and implementing his idea. He had to use math skills in order to make his airplane symmetrical. And best of all, for Silas, he was "just playing".

Sweet Potato Salad

This dish has a lot going for it, especially right now. Sweet potatoes are on sale, and it's a great make-ahead dish for Thanksgiving. And it's just plain good. When Tom tried it, he commented that it was the type of dish you'd find at the salad bar at Whole Foods. In other words, it has a fresh gourmet flavor going on. The dressing is tangy and a little bit sweet, which goes nicely with the mellow sweetness of the sweet potatoes.

This recipe is from Simply in Season, my current favorite cookbook. When I made this, I left out both the bell pepper and the green onion because, sadly, I didn't have those ingredients on hand. It was excellent even without them, but I'll definitely include pepper and green onion when I make this again. Tom reminded me after supper that I did indeed have green onions - out in the garden. Oops.

Be sure to include the fresh herbs - I used cilantro because I really love cilantro in anything. For the sweet potatoes, I peeled and diced them first, then roasted them in the oven, so that also added a nice element to the salad.

Sweet Potato Salad with Honey-Mustard Dressing

3 cups sweet potatoes (cooked, peeled, and diced)
1 cup celery (diced)
3/4 cup green or red sweet pepper (chopped)
1/2 cup onion (chopped)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley or cilantro (chopped)
3 green onions (thinly sliced, optional)
Combine in a large bowl.

Honey-Mustard Dressing:
1/2 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons oil
1 1/2 tablespoons prepared mustard
1 tablespoon honey
Combine and pour over vegetables. Toss until well coated. Refrigerate before serving.

This post is linked to:

Ultimate Recipe Swap.

Food on Fridays

Foodie Friday
Money Saving Mom

Grocery Cart Challenge

Oil Pastel Drawing

For our family, art is an important part of our children's home education. We try to make a focused effort to allow the kids chances to be creative with various kinds of art materials. Sometimes I get stressed out by the mess, though Tom can be quite the good sport, even taking the initiative to set up splatter painting for the kids.

Millie received some oil pastels as a birthday present a few months ago, and the kids have been so enthralled by the texture and rich color they can achieve when coloring with them. I saw a little art assignment for oil pastels (on a blog, though I can't remember where!), and it was very simple and easy to implement. Millie really enjoyed the process and we were both pleased with the outcome.

First, you need oil pastels. Easy to find at any craft store.


Then some quality drawing paper, also available at craft stores.
Other materials needed are a pencil and some q-tips.

The method is very simple. Start by drawing a picture with the pencil, then color it in with the oil pastels. Once your drawing is colored, you can use the q-tips to smooth out the colors. You're not necessarily trying to blend the different colors, but just give the colors on the paper a more solid look and finish.
Millie did the whole project without my help, though if I'd been nearby, I might have encouraged her to outline all the pencil lines in brown or black. I might have also suggested that she color the background. Maybe it's a good thing I didn't have the chance to meddle with her picture! I really love the curly pumpkin vine. I asked her what the "PP in the upper corner meant. Her answer was, "prize pumpkin". Of course!

This post is linked to:
Thirsty Thursday

Extended Nursing

Something that works great for our family, but which is not-so-common among moms in the U.S., is breastfeeding baby into toddlerhood. While the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends nursing your baby for one year, there's no need to end the nursing relationship once baby celebrates his first birthday. In fact, there are all sorts of good reasons, for both mother and baby, to keep breastfeeding into toddlerhood.

• Toddlers are notoriously busy little people, with sometimes erratic eating habits. Because my baby is still nursing, I know he is still getting the perfect food for him, with nutrients and antibodies that his growing body needs, even if most of his supper ends up on the floor.

• Breastfeeding is also the perfect, frugal food. Babies still need special nutrients that only breastmilk or formula can provide, all the way up to 18 months of age. There's no need to purchase expensive formula, as we can just keep on nursing.

• If your toddler should get sick, breastfeeding is not only a source of comfort, but is also the nutritionally perfect food for a little body that needs to get better. No need to run out and pay for an electrolyte replacement.

• Nursing is also a way for baby and mom to reconnect. Little ones can get so busy exploring their world, it's beneficial for them to take a break and have some mommy time. As we've added more children to our family, my job only gets busier, and it's helpful for me to take a break from the craziness of running a household and sit and nurse the baby.

• Which leads me to the fact that nursing a toddler is good for me too. I'm still burning extra calories to produce breastmilk, and who doesn't love burning some extra calories by cuddling a baby, instead of needing to get on a treadmill. I also get the benefits of a little oxytocin kick to help me relax during a stressful day. And, the protection that breastfeeding provides a mother against breast cancer (and other types of cancer) increases the longer that a mother nurses.

I am well aware that there are all kinds of factors which may make extended nursing an impossibility for some mothers and babies. But for our family, it has been a good thing.

Here I am nursing 15-month-old Silas, on a warm day in August.

For more information about the benefits of extended breastfeeding, visit Kellymom.

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday.

An Early Morning

6:42 am

Half an hour ago the baby stirred next to me, so I nursed him back to sleep. But I am still awake. Even as I shifted and scooched to give the other sleeping bodies space, hoping to keep everyone asleep, my mind was immediately up and running, with all there is to do today. The morning routine of breakfast and dishes, the spaces that will need to be cleaned and cleared today, the meals to prepare, the plans to confirm.

I wish to return to sleep, though the first light begins to seep through the closed blinds. There is that familiar sense of resignation - not enough hours in the day, too much for one person, I cannot do it all.

And then I hear quick footsteps stutter down the hall. Swiftly and quietly Millie is in our room and nearly instantly snuggled next to Tom. "I was scared," I hear her whisper. And I'm so glad we're here. She knows where to run to - a strong daddy that will keep her safe. I have my two little boys sleeping next to me, cuddled up against each other.

It's because of them that I have so much to do. I'm so glad we're here.

This post is linked to Heavenly Homemakers.

Menu Plan - Week of November 16

We had a good weekend. One of those weekends where you knock out the to-do list (admittedly, it was a modest to-do list), but there's still time to relax. This was certainly helped by the fact that I was able to pull some food out of my freezer for a couple of meals. Love that!

Looking ahead to the coming week, here's what's on the menu:

Southwest shepherd's pie, cole slaw

salad for supper

pineapple kale stew, brown rice

broccoli soup

bean burgers, mashed potatoes

no hurry vegetable curry (slow cooker recipe)

Also planning to make, at Silas' request, some date nut snacks.

It just occurred to me that this is our last full week before Thanksgiving. It's also Millie's last week of homeschool co-op before the holidays. As much as the holidays can be crazy busy with all the planning and shopping, I am looking forward to a change from some of the things we've had on the schedule for the fall. Silas is already asking when we can decorate for Christmas, so I'd say the kids are eager for the holidays.

For some meal planning inspiration, check out the hundreds of menus over at Organizing Junkie. Happy Monday!

Crayon Melting

This is my kind of kid-friendly craft project. No need to run out and buy any special materials. The kids can easily help and do so happily and independently for quite some time. There's a definite "cool" factor, and the finished product will keep the kids busy.
Recently we sorted through our crayons and found all the ones that were broken. The kids helped peel off the paper and break the crayons into even smaller pieces, then I let them each sort crayons into silicone muffin tins. We baked these in a 150 degree oven for about 20 minutes. Then I let the kids give the melted crayons a very slight stir with a wooden skewer. In no time we had "new" crayons.

I think the kids really liked the larger surface area to grip while coloring, and had so much fun just coloring to see what kind of color variations would show up on the paper.

My kind of craft!

This post is linked to:

Frugal Friday