I Love a Good List

A good list keeps me sane. It keeps me focused. It keeps me on track. Just the act of making the list makes me happy.

Have I mentioned that we're taking THREE vacations with THREE kids under THREE years old?! I haven't? Oh. That's probably because I was in denial until yesterday.

Now that I'm actually acknowledging that these trips are going to happen, I'm choosing not to focus on the insanity ahead of us, but instead on the scores of lists that will need to be made to get us through these trips in one piece.

Here are the categories I have so far:

Clothing

Baby gear

Toddler gear

Toiletries

Car snacks

Car activities

Airplane friendly activities

To do/prep before leaving

To make/buy before leaving

Groceries to bring/meal plans

Electronics

Water gear

The first trip is a family trip to Hot Springs, AR, where we'll stay in a house and need to cook our own meals. The second is a trip to family camp in the Ozark's with nine other families from our church - meals are taken care of, but we're without the luxuries of having a house to ourselves. The third trip I'm taking sans-hubby, and it's on an airplane! Three kids alone, getting through an airport, security and keeping occupied for a 2.5 hour flight while holding an 11 mo old on my lap. Heaven help me. Thankfully, we're flying to my sister's house and once we're there, it'll be just like home - toys, baby gear, minivan - awesome.

I'm looking for items to add to my 'Car Activities' list. Suggestions are greatly appreciated! Keep in mind, the boys are not quite three, so games like the license plate game aren't going to work.

Send me some ideas... I'm starting my lists!!

Outside the Box: Sand and Water Table

I love when I hear ideas for how to use a toy in a new and different way to make it exciting again! We bought a sand and water table for our boys on clearance at Target the other day and one of my best friends sent me a list (from an Amazon reviewer) that was amazing. Granted, the kids are still in love with their table simply filled with water, but I will most definitely be using these ideas to turn the table into an all-season toy. Check these out!

• Sand alone


• Water alone


• Potting soil/trowels/silk plants/plastic pots


• Landscaping stones and small tonka construction vehicles (aka 'the quarry')


• Bubble station to use with the large and small wands


• Mommy made iceberg (colored blue) on the hottest summer day with dollar store penguins and polar bears. You can even shave the iceberg to make snow or put crushed ice from the freezer into the basins


• Water and play dishes with sponges and scrubbers to play clean-up without making a mess at the sink inside


• Aquarium gravel/toys/plants with pretend fish


• Sand over buried 'fossils; - pretend dinosaur bones from dollar stores


• Pan for gold by using sand sifters and dirt with various sizes of rocks spray painted gold


• Measuring spoons/cups/jugs to teach lessons about volume. Pair with bath color tablets to teach about color mixing


• Use the Little People sets (Noah's Ark comes to mind) to play pretend


• Arts and crafts projects that are better done outside like making slime, paper mache, etc


• Tin pans/muffin cups paired with dirt/sticks/water for mud pies


• Making sand castles or using shovels and buckets to transfer the sand to dump trucks


• Use the sand and water table as you should, with sand and water and add animals who swim in the ocean and birds who live on the beach

I really like this new concept of thinking outside the box about a toy and coming up with new ideas on how to use it. There might be more of these to come!

Berried Treasure

Summer always makes me crave berries. Strawberries in May, blueberries in July and raspberries whenever I can fit them in my budget! (Are raspberries ever on sale?!) If you love berries like I do, try out these fun recipes...

Breakfast
Make a raspberry sauce to pour on pancakes or mix in yogurt. Puree a cup of berries in the blender, then whisk in 3 teaspoons lemon juice and 1-1.5 tablespoons sugar.

Lunch
Skip the mayo and place 10 raspberries in a turkey rap. The berries will get smooshed, but that's part of the fun. Call it a 'fruit roll-up'!

Dinner
Sweeten your side dish. Toss cooked whole-wheat couscous with raspberries, crumbled feta cheese, chopped red onion and a little olive oil.

Snack
Make two kid-sized smoothies simply by blending together 1 cup raspberries, a ripe banana, 1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt (or vanilla) and 1/2 cup ice.

Enjoy!

Simple Thrills

Have you ever been to Storybook Forest at Idlewild Park in Ligonier, PA? Did you know that it was named the Second Best Kids' Park in the World by Amusement Today? If you have, then you would have experienced the larger than life representations of all the nursery rhymes from our childhood as well as The Neighborhood of Make Believe, straight out of Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. This amusement park doesn't have all the thrill rides that you'll find at Cedar Point, for example, but when you have little ones who can't ride those rides anyway, why not pack up for a day trip to a park that THEY would enjoy? If you're looking for a fun-filled day trip, check out some of these (or click here for even more ideas) Storybook Island This 8-acre family theme park features over 140 live performances of fairytale sets. The sets include themes from old-school nursery rhymes as well as newer additions from modern-day Disney movies. Admission is free! The downside is that this park is in South Dakota, but it's only 45 minutes from Mount Rushmore, which would be a fun way to complete the trip. Holiday World Bringing Santa to Santa Claus, IN for over 60 years, this park's attractions celebrate Halloween, July 4th and Thanksgiving, plus it offers a waterpark with the country's tallest water drop (the Pilgrim's Plunge) and The Wildebeest, the world's longest watercoaster, over 1/3 mile long. Children's Fairyland Amusement Park In Oakland, CA, you can visit Children's Fairyland, America's first storybook themed park. You can visit places like Pinocchio's castle and the Old Lady in the Shoe's shoe. For only $2, you can purchase a 'magic key' to listen to all the stories at each site. And at only $7 admission fee, it's a steal! These parks and others were featured in the August 2009 issue of Cookie Magazine.

A New Spin on FroYo

With summertime comes the craving for cool, sweet treats. Next time your kids ask for a popsicle or ice cream, try out this easy treat on an edible stick. Delicious!

In a bowl, gently stir together:
- 2 cups low-fat vanilla yogurt
- 1 cup assorted berries (blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, straberries)

Spoon into popsicle molds (if you have them) or small (about 3 oz) paper cups. Cover with foil. Cut a small slit in the foil and insert a pretzel rod as the 'stick.' Freeze until firm, about 3 hours. Remove yogurt from molds or cups and discard foil before serving.

In case your kids aren't crazy about vanilla yogurt or berries, here are some flavors by Yoplait Light (buty ou can use any brand you like best). Pick any of these and try mixing in banana slices, peaches, berries, chocolate chips, flaked coconut... the sky is the limit!

Apple Turnover

Apricot Mango

Banana Cream Pie

Berries 'N Cream

Blackberry

Blueberry Patch

Boston Cream Pie

Harvest Peach

Key Lime Pie

Lemon Cream Pie

Orange Crème

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Raspberry Cheesecake

Red Raspberry

Strawberries 'N Bananas

Strawberry

Strawberry Orange Sunrise

Strawberry Shortcake

Very Cherry

Very Vanilla

White Chocolate Strawberry

Freeze some up today!

The original recipe is from the April 2009 issue of Parents magazine.