Ladybug Daydreams

Author: Wendy

Calming a Cranky Baby

Posted by Wendy on April 10, 2013 5 Comments

Every baby is different. There’s no doubt about that. Small Fry is not the same as either of his brothers were. Or maybe it’s just that hubby and I are different people since he’s a bit of a gap baby. Who knows?

In general, he’s a pretty happy baby, but like all of us, he has his moments – usually when he’s not had a good nap. There are times during those tantrums (for lack of a better word) that I’m not available to comfort him. Since I’m still his favorite person, this can pose a problem for the rest of the family. So we’ve found something that’s almost as good as me: this song.

9 times out of 10, this will calm him down. It’s not strictly limited to this particular song; anything Leigh Nash sings has a calming effect on him. I think he has a baby crush on her ;). But this one definitely seems to be his favorite.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: parenting | Tagged: babies, leigh nash, music, radio, sixpence none the richer

Quilts, Quilts, and More Quilts!

Posted by Wendy on April 9, 2013 4 Comments

Okay, just two quilts, actually.

I typically make a blanket of some kind whenever we have a new niece or nephew. So far, we have 4 nieces and 3 nephews. All but one have gotten quilts and the last nephew (born last September) got a crocheted blanket. Well, all but two… Our two-year-old niece (her birthday was April 1st – no foolin’!) somehow got looked over when she was born. Bad auntie! So I’ve made her this quilt featuring Sunbonnet Sue flying a kite. I was able to give it to her on Sunday, and her reaction was priceless. She immediately just wanted her mom to cuddle her up in it. What a way to warm my heart 🙂

IMG_20130403_163045 IMG_20130403_162957

This quilt was my first time using a free-form quilting style, and I must say: I loved it! Because there was no overlapping stitches, it was much easier to keep the fabric from bunching. I definitely see myself using this style again.

The second quilt I want to talk about today is my first attempt at a rag quilt. This one was made using some of Small Fry’s outgrown baby clothes. I seem to have forgotten to take a picture of the quilt by itself, but you can still see it in this picture.

IMG_20130403_162822

My favorite block is underneath Seahawk’s foot, and it’s an emblem from one of Small Fry’s newborn shirts that says “Little Brother” baseball-jersey style. I put it in the center so it would have a place of prominence. My second favorite is the one right next to Seahawk’s knee. It’s a pair of Small Fry’s pants that he wore for months. It was really sad when I finally had to admit that they didn’t fit him anymore! They’re camouflage and oh-so-cute.

I just got this book from JoAnn a few days ago, and I seriously can’t wait to make these blocks!

543

 

There are 12, one representing each month of the year. I’ll definitely blog about them when I get started.

name plate copy

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: quilting/sewing | Tagged: free form quilting, quilts, rag quilt, sunbonnet sue

Homeschool: Hand Art Illusion

Posted by Wendy on April 8, 2013 8 Comments

When I saw this idea, I knew it was the art project for us. Easy, creative, and used only supplies we already had on hand (namely plain paper and colored pencils). While the original used only circles for the concentric shapes, I let the kids use any shape they wanted.

Seahawk used rectangles:

536

Munchkin used hearts:

IMG_20130403_155435

And I used circles and Small Fry’s hand:

IMG_20130403_155507

If you think it’s easy outlining an 8-month-old’s hands, think again, lol. But it wasn’t the hardest thing in the world, either.

The black outlines is one way we deviated from the original post on this art project, but I found ours were too muddy to tell what they were without them. So if you try this with your kids, feel free to leave them off if you want :).

name plate copy

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: homeschooling | Tagged: art, colored pencils, easy art for kids, homeschool

Picture of the Week

Posted by Wendy on April 5, 2013 2 Comments

IMG_20130402_165424

My hubby bought me a new phone this week (!), and I was just messing around with Seahawk, but this picture turned out pretty good, so I decided to share it with you. He hates his freckles, but I think they’re charming :).

Have a great weekend!!

name plate copy

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: picture of the week

Homeschool: Human Body

Posted by Wendy on April 4, 2013 5 Comments

For our homeschool science right now, we’re working our way through the major organs in the human body. I found this site that has some pretty good information on each one, as well as games if you can access it from a computer (which I never can, so we just use the information).

I bought a roll of brown shipping paper from the Dollar Tree and traced each kid life-size. The first day, I just did that and had them draw their face in. Starting on Tuesday, we’ve been adding 3 organs a day. As of today, we’ve got the voice box, lungs, heart, liver, stomach, spleen, kidneys, gallbladder, and pancreas done. With each one, they draw in the organ and then I read the information to them. I quiz them as we go to make sure they’re retaining the information – at least a little. I’m sure we’ll have to go over the topic again during their school career, but we’re at least building a foundation here.

238

251

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: homeschooling | Tagged: homeschool, human body, science

Homeschool: State Study of Washington

Posted by Wendy on April 3, 2013 4 Comments

Inspired by Confessions of a Homeschooler, I’ve been working through the 50 states with my kids. First up, we did Hawaii. We had dinner with my brother and sister-in-law that week, and the kids looked at all of their pictures from the three times they’ve been. The next week was Alaska (I’m going basically west to east with a few variations when needed). There is a couple from our church who live in Alaska about half the year, so we picked their brains on what life is like up there. The thing that stuck with all 4 of us the most? The fact that there are virtually no roads; you have to fly to get from city to city.

Our third state was the wonderful state of Washington. We started the week, as we always do, by having the kids trace the outline of the state from our huge wall map. We don’t have a wall big enough to display it (there are 2 that would work in the school room except for the fact that one has the windows and the other was painted to be a chalkboard wall by the previous tenants – and I’m not complaining! That wall is pretty awesome!), so we keep it rolled up and bring it out once a week for this activity. Once the state is pencilled, the kids go over their lines in ink and then bring it to me, where I write in the basic facts that I want to teach them within the outline of the state. They’re basically the same from state to state (except for Hawaii, because that was our first one and I didn’t really have a plan yet when we did it): Nickname (The Evergreen State), Motto (Alki), Capital (Olympia), Largest City (Seattle), Area (71,300 sq mi), Population (6,897,012), Highest Point (Mount Rainier), Lowest Point (The Pacific Ocean), and its Admission to the Union (November 11, 1889). Additionally, we put in the location of the capital, largest city, and highest point. In Washington’s case, we also included Mount Saint Helens.

Here’s Seahawk’s map:

Image04012013130358

Image04012013154056

And Munchkin’s:

Image04012013154124

Image04012013130328

I still owe them a baking soda and vinegar volcano to represent Mount Saint Helens. That’ll happen probably next week :).

We also worked on our “Fifty Nifty United States” song. Only three states in and they can already sing the whole thing start to finish! Since they mastered that so quickly, we’re going to work on the Presidents song that Confessions recommends starting next week.

I also plan to make a printout of the “Lower 48” and laminate it for each kid, cut the states apart, and attach magnetic tape to the back of each one to have them use as a geography puzzle. I haven’t been able to make it to Staples yet to get that done, though…

name plate copy

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: homeschooling | Tagged: baking soda and vinegar volcano, evergreen state, geography, homeschool, mount saint helens, seattle area, state motto, US geography, Washington

Multnomah Falls and the Bonneville Dam

Posted by Wendy on April 1, 2013 2 Comments

Last weekend, we took our kids to Multnomah Falls, which is a decent drive from home but not too bad. It’s one of hubby’s favorite places to go, and since we hadn’t been there in a while, it seemed like the thing to do – free entertainment for the day, less the cost of gas.

I couldn’t get far enough back to get a decent picture of the whole thing, but trust me: it’s a wondrous site to behold. It’s the tallest year-round waterfall in the nation. It’s actually a double waterfall; there’s a 542-foot one in the back, and then its pool has another 69-foot fall to the very bottom. Absolutely gorgeous.

Kids Nov 2012 039

 

The bridge is 105 feet from the bottom pool, so between the two falls.

Kids Nov 2012 040

 

Kids Nov 2012 041

 

Kids Nov 2012 042

 

After leaving the Falls, we went to the Bonneville Dam, which even though I’ve lived in this area my entire life, I’d never been to. There were quite a few interesting things to see, and I won’t be able to do an explanation justice, so if you’re interested in finding out more, I recommend just going to their site.

 

Kids Nov 2012 044

 

This was a defensive outpost during WWII.

 

Kids Nov 2012 045

 

Seahawk standing next to a retired turbine.

 

 

Kids Nov 2012 047

 

Munchkin inside the dam.

 

Kids Nov 2012 049

 

Seahawk inside the dam.

What’s the coolest natural site you’ve ever been to? Let me know in the comments!

name plate copy

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: Other | Tagged: bonneville dam, family fun, multnomah falls, waterfall

Picture of the Week

Posted by Wendy on March 29, 2013 2 Comments

Kids Nov 2012 038

What could be better than a sleeping Small Fry wrapped up in the quilt my late grandmother made for me as a child? I love it so much that I’ve been restoring it the past few weeks, and it’s back in action now!

name plate copy

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: quilting/sewing | Tagged: quilt, sleeping baby, sunbonnet sue

Monster Patch

Posted by Wendy on March 28, 2013 2 Comments

If your kids are anything like mine, you probably have a lot of pants come through your washing machine with ripped out knees. Here’s a creative way to patch them up, courtesy of Family Fun Magazine!

Kids Nov 2012 033

Kids Nov 2012 034

Kids Nov 2012 035

The tutorial in the magazine had you use white felt for the eyes, but we used buttons instead, mostly because it was 1 a.m. and we were ready to be done with this project! We did it as a surprise for Seahawk – he’s much harder on his pants than Munchkin, which is only compounded by the fact that when we were buying them, Target only one pair in his size. He was dubious at first, but loves his Monster Patch now. Oh, and lest you think I’m the only crafty one in the family, that’s hubby’s hand doing the sewing :).

What’s your favorite way to patch a hole? Let me know in the comments!

name plate copy

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: quilting/sewing | Tagged: clothing repair, family fun magazine, jeans, kids clothes, patch

Homemade Corn Tortillas

Posted by Wendy on March 27, 2013 5 Comments

I know I’m not the first, and I probably won’t be the last, to blog about the joys of making your own corn tortillas, but I gotta tell you, if you’ve never tried it, you MUST!

Tortillas are one of those things that I always thought just kind of “existed.” I never even considered the idea that I could make my own. I started with flour tortillas a few weeks ago, and while they’re better than store-bought, they’re not “I’ll never buy them again” good. The corn tortillas, though, are to die for! It takes about an hour start to finish (plus the time to make your filling), but it’s completely worth it! Here’s how you do it:

First, buy some Maseca from the Hispanic foods aisle of your grocery store. It’s priced comparably to flour, so not too much :). In case you don’t know, Maseca is corn flour – NOT to be confused with corn starch. Maseca won’t thicken your gravy, and corn starch won’t make good tortillas.

Kids Nov 2012 015

Here’s what it looks like out of the bag:

Kids Nov 2012 016

Now, I forgot to take a picture of the next step, but it’s just adding water according to the specifications on the bag to make a dough.

Then you form your dough into balls. I actually made 12, not 5, but again, forgot to take a picture in the beginning.

Kids Nov 2012 023

The next several pictures are essentially one step: flatten the balls into tortillas. If you have a tortilla press, I’ve heard (read) that this is a lot easier. If you, like me, don’t, it’s still not worth not trying over. The most important thing to remember is that you have to use plastic wrap on either side of your tortilla. Using additional Maseca, like flour on a pie dough, doesn’t work. Trust me on that! I tried it that way the first time I made these and almost gave up. Plastic wrap, or a cut open plastic bag, is the way to go.

First, place your tortilla ball between two pieces of plastic:

Kids Nov 2012 017

Then flatten it with a cast iron skillet (I found that it’s best to squish it down, then turn the whole thing, plastic wrap and all, over and do it again before moving on):

Kids Nov 2012 018

Finally, without removing the plastic wrap, roll it out with a rolling pin (again, flipping it over inside the wrap a time or two):

Kids Nov 2012 020

Kids Nov 2012 019

Kids Nov 2012 021

Kids Nov 2012 022

Carefully peel the plastic wrap away and place your tortillas on a baking sheet (with layers separated by plastic – are you sensing a theme here?) to await their turn on the griddle:

Kids Nov 2012 024

Kids Nov 2012 025

Kids Nov 2012 027

I then put my plastic wrap into my jar of Maseca so I can use it next time. I hate throwing away plastic, so I’m going to use that baby as many times as I can!

Kids Nov 2012 026

Now you’re ready to cook them! They take 45-60 seconds per side.

Kids Nov 2012 028

Kids Nov 2012 030

You’ll more than likely end up with small pieces that break off; cook them anyway and enjoy them as a cooking snack!

Kids Nov 2012 031

That’s it! Once they’re all done, use them the same way you would their store-bought counterparts.

Kids Nov 2012 032

Have you ever made your own tortillas? How did it go? If you haven’t, are you interested in trying? Let me know in the comments!

name plate copy

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Like this:

Like Loading...
Posted in: cooking | Tagged: cast iron skillet, corn tortillas, dinner, diy, food, homemade
« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 … 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 Next »

Welcome!

Welcome to Ladybug Daydreams! My name is Wendy, and I’m glad you’re here. I am a homeschooling mom to 5 boys. I write about homeschooling, homeschool curriculum, yarn (both knitting and crochet), and more! I hope you enjoy what you read.

Social

  • View ladybugdaydream’s profile on Twitter
  • View ladybugdaydreams’s profile on Instagram
  • View ladybugdaydream’s profile on Pinterest

Subscribe

Join 492 other subscribers

April 2023
S M T W T F S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
30  
« Nov    

Search

MyFreeCopyright.com Registered & Protected

Copyright © 2023 Ladybug Daydreams.

Theme by themehall.com.

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
%d bloggers like this: