Sweet Treat

Do you ever find yourself BaRgAiNiNg with your kids to get them to behave, clean up their toys, or finish their meals?  If you answered yes…I’m right there with you!  My 4 year old son had a really good day today and my husband and I wanted to ReWaRd him with something special.  I wanted the reward to be immediate so that he would make the connection that he earned something SpEcIaL because he was a great listener TODAY.  I didn’t want the reward to be a toy or anything that would cost money because I don’t want him to start expecting toys for doing what we ExPeCt of him.  I went into my baking cabinet and pulled out a box of CoOkiE mIx that I had bought at our local dollar store.  After I put my daughter to sleep I pulled out all of the fall sprinkles and we got to work!  We had a great time making the cookies and my son was so proud that he got to put the sprinkles on all by himself.  It truly was an EyE-OpEniNg night for me because in a pinch I found an inexpensive way to show my son that we were proud of him and realized that rewards don’t need to be elaborate, they can be as simple as some YuMmY cOoKiEs and time alone with Mommy and Daddy.

~Jersey Girl~

Can Anyone Hear Me?

I’m writing this post today with a scratch in my throat.  No, not a scratch due to a cold, but a scratch due to raising my voice to get my kid’s AttEnTion or tell them they need to stop doing something for the 20th time!  Can you relate?

I remember my teaching days and how I learned in college that no good teacher will YELL at their students to get them to listen.  I just had to LaUgh when I thought of that today.  It is amazing what situations can make you ScReAm, regardless if you are a “good” parent or not.

When I reach the point of YELLING it is an instant reminder that I need a B R E A K.  I need to ask for help, get a babysitter, or take a night off and distance myself from the kiddos so I can sort out my thoughts and relax.  When I do, I am much more patient with the kids and it makes me feel like a better Mom because I can handle frustrating situations with more ease.

No one wants to be the yelling Mom…so the best thing to is find a SoLuTion to the problem…see you after my nap ;)

~Lara

{Mexican Jumping Beans!!}

A few months ago my husband had a business trip and picked these guys up at one of the AiPpOrT sHoPs.  When he held them out to my girls and they began to “JuMp” my first response was, “What’s the catch?”   Turns out there is no catch.  They actually do “jump”, as there is a LiTtLe WoRm inside that will eventually emerge as a moth.    Amazing!  In all my years of college science and then in my years of teaching high school science I had not once heard about these incredibly interesting creatures.

My husband also bought the book Lucus and His Loco Beans:  A Tale Of The Mexican Jumping Bean by Ramona Moreno Winner which tells a story about a boy and his grandfather hunting for Mexican jumping beans.  It also chronicles the life cycle of the LiTtLe CrItTeR.  It is a very educational book that introduces Spanish words and gives a science lesson at the same time.  I highly recommend it!

Both of my girls took the Mexican jumping beans and the book to school for “ShOw-AnD-TeLL” and it was a HuGe HiT.  I even had parents tell me they were so fascinated by the Mexican jumping bean (my girls had given a bean to each classmate to take home) that they looked it up on the internet themselves!

The book and Mexican Jumping Beans can be purchased from Amazon at:

Book:  http://www.amazon.com/Lucas-His-Loco-Beans-Mexican/dp/0965117413/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1319199798&sr=8-7

Mexican jumping beans:  http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=mexican+jumping+beans

You can learn more about Mexican jumping beans by going to this website:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_jumping_bean

:)

Robynn~

P.S.  Here’s a little video of the jumping beans!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxNOj-tj5D0

{10.23.11}

It’s a BeAuTiFuL day here in Chanute, KS!  Even at 5:30p.m. my smart phone is saying it is 79 DeGreEs!!   I hope you had a great weekend and were able to enjoy some of the beautiful ScEnErY where ever you may be!!  If you’re thinking about your “Live It List” you may want to include something along the lines of enjoying the great OuTdOoRs more!

Enjoy!!

:)

Robynn~

We Are…Weight Watcher Consultants

~ – ~

Currently we hold two Weight Watcher meetings at Neosho Memorial Regional Medical Center on Mondays.

Times: Weigh-in 11am, meeting 11:30am
Weigh-in 5pm, meeting 5:30pm

Informational meetings will be held on Oct. 31 at 11:30am and 5:30pm to discuss new and upcoming changes that will benefit current and new Weight Watcher members! First time visitors may sit in on their first meeting for FREE!

For more information you can contact Karen at nerak65_99@yahoo.com or at 432-8119.

Bedroom Makeover

Last Thursday at about 10 a.m. I walked through our master bedroom and decided I was tired of it looking like an afterthought.  I didn’t want to spend much money and wanted a new look.  I gave Robynn a call, and she picked up a couple cans of antique white spraypaint, a package of dropcloths and brought some leftover paint from one of her recent projects.  We also gathered a handful of things from our basements that we weren’t using and incorporated that as some new decor pieces.  By 6:00 that evening I had a new bedroom!!

BEFORE

AFTER

Notice the new dresser!  Don’t you love it?  Robynn had that light green paint and I gave it a distressed look with some leftover brown paint I had.  Spray painted the hardware, and ta-da!  And check out the curtains. Those were made out of drop cloths (yes the stuff that painters throw on the floor).  We cut it down the middle seam and then hung them.  No sewing…how EaSy was that!?

Close-up of dresser, BEFORE!

And….AFTER!

Another view…BEFORE

And….AFTER!!

I had an old door in our shop and decided we needed a headboard.  And notice all the picture frames, shelves and end tables…spray painted those antique white!  It lightened up the room without having to repaint the walls.  Woohoo!

Having a fun master bedroom has been something on my “liVe-it liSt” and how great it was to accomplish this in a day, by utilizing the resources I had.  Big thanks to Robynn and her daughter for coming out for a couple hours to help.  I’ve been sMiLing in my dreams ever since!

{By the way…because I am a perfectionist I had put off working on this room ever since we moved in (4 years ago!).  Last week I decided that if I kept waiting for the perfect moment and perfect decor strategy…well, let’s be honest…it probably would have never happened.  Sometimes you just have to GO WITH IT!  I can always change something in this room later (like make the headboard an official piece by adding some more wood trim, repaint the walls, etc) but for now I can enjoy a new look.  I may not have picked the green dresser paint had I thought this room out in more depth, but it was FREE paint, and much to my surprise my husband thought it was “cool” ;) Sometimes the things we do on a whim turn out to be something we love the most! }

~Lara

My Kind Of Perfect

             

       How many times have you found yourself ScrAmbLinG around the night before a holiday or party trying to clean up your house for your guests?  It was HaRd EnOuGh to keep the house straightened out when it was just two of us, but throw in two kids and now it seems just plain impossible.  A while ago I found a saying that I LOVED and just had to have for my home…Please excuse the noise & mess…the kids are MaKiNg HaPpY MeMoRiEs.

        BINGO!  These were my thoughts exactly, but I just couldn’t find a way to put them into words.  I don’t want my kids to grow up remembering a mom that picks things up the second they are out of place.  I want them to look back on their ChiLdHoOd and think of all of the fun games and activities we did together in our home.  I can vividly remember 30 years back, my sister and I playing with our Barbie bathtubs on a tablecloth on our kitchen floor.  My mom wasn’t worried about water, bubbles, and a mess.  She was CrEaTiNg An EnViRoNmEnT that allowed us to enjoy what we had and JuSt Be KiDs.

        It isn’t always easy to let things go, but I am making an effort to pLaY mOrE and WoRrY LeSs.  So what if someone stops over for a visit and my house is perfect?  My kids are perfectly happy and in the end…that is all I can ask for.

~Jersey Girl~

So God Made a Farmer

This week there was haRveSt on the Shoup farm.  We had a drought this year and the beans could have been better, but it is always a fUn time of year because the colors are changing, the weather is enjoyable, and we finally get to reap the benefits of all of our haRd work.

The kids were aNxiOus to watch the combine harvesting our beans shortly after they woke up.  Watching them get excited about harvest brings back all the mEmoRies I have growing up on a farm.

This past week I received the link to the video below, spoken from a famous radio personality, Paul Harvey.  He couldn’t have dEscRibed my DAD and the farmers I know in any better way….Have you tHanKed a farmer today?

 

I am PROUD to be a farmer’s daughter.  Love you DAD, thanks for all you do ♥

~Lara

{Ba-Wog}

“I’m taking pictures for my Ba-WoG (blog)” my 3-year old told me as she walked around the house snapping shots with an old camera.

Kids just love to ImitAtE Mom and Dad, whether it be dressing up in their clothes, playing house, or talking on a cell phone.  It actually is quite cute seeing a little tike copying Mom or Dad.  That is until they imitate bad behavior.  I have that happen from time to time such as overhearing my oldest saying the same line I’ve used in a harsh tone of voice.  {GULP}

It’s hard to watch yourself in the mirror when the reflection isn’t pretty.  But it is also a chance for making a ChAnGe.  One that is admirable, honorable, and and FiT for a child to imitate.

:)

Robynn~