| Random Information from a typical Newsletter |
| Useful Links www.bcm.tmc.edu/cnrc --The USDA's nutrition research center www.5aday.com ---family-friendly recipes incorporating fruits and vegetables www.pbskids.org ---PBS's site, including educational games featuring tv show characters, downloadable coloring pages, etc. www.nickjr.com --Nick Jr's site, games and downloadable coloring pages www.child.com ---Child magazine--very good section called "your child now" that features age-specific topics and advice www.clubmom.com ---mom-specific info, chat boards etc www.epicurious.com ---Bon Appetit and Gourmet magazine recipes in a HUGE database. Search for any type of recipe, you'll find it here. www.parentsplace.com ---more parenting info Disclaimer: Please note that the MOMS Club® does not endorse any particular website. A few websites are listed for sample informational purposes, only. |
| Craft Ideas-- Mix 1 part unsweetened Koolaid mix with 1 part water to make a non-toxic paint. It will also be scratch-and-sniff when it dries. Take a dark piece of construction paper and put small objects on it, then set it out in the sun for a few hours. The paper will fade except where the objects are. Use letters to spell out the child's name. |
| Heinous Chores to Try: Following are some of the "Heinous Chore of the Month" items, which are chores that you hate to do, but which will make you feel so productive, you can quit for the rest of the day and not feel guilty! -Clean out the dryer vent...detach the hoses at the back of the dryer (unplug it first!). Vacuum out all the hoses and ducts, then reattach the hoses. -Clean out the gunk from the dishwasher door...the bottom corners where the hinges are. Yuck... -Clean the handles to the faucets by removing the "H" or "C" discs with a screwdriver, unscrewing the handle, then cleaning out the inside of the handles. -Change the filters in your furnace or air conitioner and then go flip the mattresses in each bedroom. -Clean out your car, including vacuuming the floor and seats. -Take a screwdriver and tighten every doorknob, handle and drawer pull in your house. |
| Play Dough for Little Kids Courtesy of the Children’s Museum, here is a recipe for play dough that makes a soft, pliable dough that is easy for little hands to manipulate. When you store it in a plastic baggie it remains soft and doesn’t need any kneading to soften it before the kids can use it. 1 cup flour ½ cup salt 2 tsp cream of tartar 3 tsp oil food coloring 1 cup water Put the water on the stove to heat up. (It doesn’t have to be boiling, but it must be pretty hot.) Measure the dry ingredients into a bowl and make a well in the center. Add the oil and food coloring, then add the water. Stir until it’s well-combined. It will thicken as it gets stirred. When it’s cool enough to hold, let the kids knead the dough until it’s smooth and cool enough to play with. Store in a plastic bag. |
| Organization: Menus To organize and streamline your dinner preparations, look at the way that you probably fix lunches. You have two or three things that you make all the time, right? You keep the ingredients to those things handy so that you don’t have to put too much thought and effort into lunches, right? Well, try the same thing with dinners. Make a list of three weeks’ worth of meals that your family likes, then rotate them throughout the year. Alternatively, assign a night for each type of meal (Monday is chicken, Tuesday is pasta, etc.). If you have a set schedule, you can shop around your menus and keep ingredients handy. You will also avoid the “what’s for dinner?” 4pm panic. Put the meals and their ingredients on filing cards, then choose meals for the week based on the sales at the grocery store and what you have on hand. |