Moss Terrariums {Crafty Science!}

I have been wanting to make a terrarium since I first saw them on Etsy, at the end of last summer. I vaguely planned to make them as Christmas gifts, then got caught up in back-to-school & Halloween. Suddenly the holidays were upon us and it was too late. I figured we'd do it as one of our spring projects. Until I was gazing out the window, checking out the squirrels and birds, when I saw this:

 See that lovely patch of green between the dying grass and the fence? It's moss! With the weather being so mild, and even warm on some days, the moss has been "living" it up. I kept my eye on it for a few days and then I just couldn't contain myself any longer. I dressed Little Guy for a nature walk and tossed a few plastic bags and spoons into a tote and we were off to collect things for our terrariums. In January. In Michigan. (Yes, I'm going to keep saying that. I am still amazed at the weather and will continue to be awed until there is 6" of snow on the ground and the temperatures have stayed below 30 F for at least a week!)

Once he finished running around like a nut, we got down to business. It was time to walk very slowly and see if we could spy any moss growing. Once we found a good patch, we collected some of it. Now, when you look for moss for this project, make sure of a few things:
1) Only take a little from each patch and leave the rest to regenerate.
2) Use a spoon or spatula to carefully lift it from the ground. It's pretty hardy stuff, but you want to make sure to lift the entire plant - including its root system.  
3) Don't forget to get some soil from the same area, preferably from directly under where the moss was growing. We found three different types of moss on our outing and each one had a very different type of soil beneath it: One had mostly rocky, sandy soil; one had a soil that was composed mostly of dead grass; a third had very rich soil that was mostly composed of what Little Guy refers to as "worm poops".
4) Take note of how moist the soil below the moss is. You are going to want to try to mimic that amount of moisture in your terrarium.  
5) Also be on the lookout for some nice-looking small pebbles and a few sticks or pieces of tree bark that have signs of moss or mushrooms (or, what Little Guy calls "fun guys") on them. We found a stick with some white "moldy" spots on it, a piece of bark from a tree stump with a mushroom, and bark from a dormant tree with green spots. We're excited to find out if anything sprouts from them!

Now, I want to tell you that you can use nearly anything to make your terrarium. I learned quite a bit from Storm The Castle. (This is THE coolest site for finding really neat things to do, by the way. Go bookmark it right now. I promise you'll use it. Repeatedly.) We used two different things for our terrariums: old honey jars and a plastic cake carrier that someone gave us a store-bought cake in for our terrarium containers. But, really, as long as it is see-through and has a lid or small opening, go for it: aquarium with a crack in it, glass vase, 2-liter pop bottle... Just remember that you're going to have to be able to get stuff into the container and arrange it! (Storm the Castle has a great tutorial on how to make really long tweezer-type thingies from a wire coat hanger so you can reach. I told you that site is great!)

Start by laying down the dirt you collected. Because the cake carrier is near-impossible to open without really jostling whatever is inside, I knew that we wouldn't be able to open it up to add water very often. So, I took a plastic lid that is about 1/4" deep and placed some cotton into it (the white rectangle on the left of Little Guy in the photo). I put this in the center of the cake "plate" before adding dirt. After we got the soil in place, I poked a small hole in the mound above the cotton-filled lid and poured some water into it, as well as all over the rest of the soil. My reasoning for the cotton was so it would hold a layer of moisture without saturating the soil. Don't know if it will matter in the end, or not. Just my theorizing!

(After I took the photo above, I noticed that pieces of dirt and rocks were falling into the area where the dome part of the cake carrier would fit into the bottom. So, I tore up a piece of paper towel into strips and poked them into that area to keep the debris out. You can see the paper towels in the photos below. Keep this in mind while you do the next part!)

So, where was I?! Oh, yeah: add your soil. Make sure to keep track of which soil is added where if you're using different mosses with different soil needs! Pile it up so you have a nice hill if your base is a flat piece like out cake dome has. If you're using a bottle-like container, try using a funnel to direct the different soils to different areas and attempt to get a mound going in there. This is important because, if you ever really look at the lay of the land that your moss is found on, you'll notice that it is usually on an inclined surface, even if it's only slight. Make sure to save some of the soil for later - you're going to need it to fill in spaces between the moss. Once you have your mound of soil, ever so slightly pack it down and moisten it. I just poured a little water onto the cake plate, I used a spray bottle of water for the honey jars.

Now it's time to add the moss! The pieces we had were rather large chunks, so I showed Little Guy how to gently pull them apart into small pieces. I had him decide where to place it. He loved being in charge of this part of the operation! It took forever for him to decide. He kept putting a piece down, turning it a little... moving it to the left, to the right... Sometimes he completely abandoned a piece in favor of a different one. It was really cool to watch him!

Once the moss was in place, I carefully added the reserved soils in between the pieces of moss. Then it was time for Little Guy to add the embellishments we collected. Now, I considered grabbing some tiny "guys" toys and a couple of tiny cars to include in the terrarium, but though better of it. Just before I went digging through the toys, I had a very disturbing vision: Little Guy attempting to recover his toys. Dirt everywhere. Terrarium ruined. Now, if your kids are cool with using toys inside, go for it. I think it would be pretty cool to create a scene with them. Just make sure that whatever you add to your terrarium will be able to withstand the high levels of moisture that it will encounter. Also consider whether it might give off any toxic fumes when wet or warm. The cute little plastic bunnies you add could end up killing all of the living things in there.

I think that I probably added too much moisture to our cake dome terrarium. Since opening and closing it just isn't an option, I have a back-up plan. If I notice that the dome is constantly coated in water droplets or the mosses or fungi start dying, I am going to poke small holes in the top of the plastic dome. This can be done very easily without marring the view: Just take a small nail or even a thick sewing needle and hold it with a pair of pliers over fire (a lighter or the burner of a gas stove.) Um... make sure your pliers are insulated or you're wearing an oven mitt! It doesn't have to get red hot, just hot enough to melt the plastic. Then, poke small holes through the dome, toward the top. This should allow enough moisture to escape without completely drying it out.

Our Finished Products:

This was such a fun and easy project to do. While we worked on it, we had some great conversations about ecosystems, habitats, what plants need to grow, what kind of rocks we were using, the water cycle... We also pondered the possibility of small insects, seeds, and spores being mixed into the soil we used. I'm anxious to see if any surprises grow in our terrariums.

I have another plastic domed container that has been sitting on top of my refrigerator since last spring. I've known it would be great for some use, but was waiting until I was inspired with an idea to use it. This thing is 18" in diameter! I want to do a similar project with that one. I'm not telling you what it is just yet, so watch for a post. It's going to be a little while, though. I need to have the space for the thing to have a home near a window, so I really need to do some purging of "stuff". One of these days, my husband and oldest will be gone all day. That's the day I call Salvation Army for a pick-up, get out the boxes, and get rid of all of this crap we don't really need! That day is coming soon and I can't wait for it. :)

One more thing: If you like this idea, but don't have the time or desire to make your own terrarium (or if you just don't have a moss supply available to you), you can get there ready-made. One Etsy shop I know of that sells these is 8Days Of Treasures. (You can check out the review I wrote of her shop for the Made in Michigan Blog Hop in October HERE.) Stephanie lives in Michigan and creates some pretty awesome terrariums! She also sells some unique glass containers that you could make your terrarium in, such as vinegar decanters, salt ans pepper shakers, and covered candy dishes.

If you make a terrarium and write about it, 

please leave me a link in the comments. 

If you have an idea of what could be added to a terrarium 

for a cool scene, share it! 

If you have pictures of your terrariums, 

I'd love for you to post them to my Facebook wall!

This post has been linked at:

Probiotics for Your TOILET?! {And a #Giveaway! (12/2) US}

Sponsored by Tomoson.com

When I heard about Natural House's non-toxic household cleaners, I have to tell you I was intrigued. First, there were the names of their products: Sinky, Flushy, and Trashy. Hmm... weird, but what's in a name, right? Next, I wondered how on earth would probiotics help with cleaning. Well, it only took a few minutes to watch this video to see and understand. The idea seems so simple to me now. Why did no one think of this before?!


Yeah, kind of a "DUH!" moment for me! LOL

So, I gave them a try. Hubby, who is in charge of cleaning the bathroom (hey, I'm the only girl in a house full of guys - ICK!), was handed the package of four Flushy probiotic packets. He doesn't do well with instructions, so I was interested to see what he'd do. Oh, come on! I have to find some form on entertainment, don't I? I don't get out much... Anyway, the bag has instructions that are so easy, even Little Guy could have figured them out - there are pictures and words! Hubby looked at the pictures. LOL! He dropped the packet into the toilet, let it foam for about 15 minutes, then used the brush to scrub the inside of the bowl. He asked me, kind of worried, if he should flush the toilet or not. Um... yeah. While we didn't notice a difference right away, other than a sparkling clean toilet bowl, we did find a NOTICEABLE difference in the morning. Our bathroom no longer had that lingering truck stop bathroom odor anymore. I knew it was the toilet giving it off, but we just couldn't figure out where it was coming from. Must have been under the rim. Those little probiotics went at it and I no longer have to hold my breath when I go in the bathroom! YAY!

I have a huge complaint about dirty dishes in this house. People (Hubby and my oldest, to be exact) have a nasty habit of leaving a bite or two of food in their bowls and on their plates when they put them into the sink. Then, they rinse the dish off (at least they do that!) Well, little bits of cereal, cookie crumbs, and veggies end up getting washed down the drain. Add grease that inevitably ends up in the pipes when I wash pans. We always have had a slow drain and it will clog at least once every week or so. I refuse to pour toxic drain cleaner down there, so I've been hitting the clogs with baking soda and vinegar and following with a boiling water chaser. It works - kinda. Well, after just two weekly uses of Sinky, my drains are fast and we haven't had a clog! Additionally, my kitchen smells better, too. You know how clogged drains have that nasty, lingering odor? Well, I must have just gotten used to it - not a good thing! The steps leading to our apartment land visitors right in the middle of my kitchen. It never occurred to me that they were getting nasty sink odors as a first impression. It didn't until someone mentioned how nice it smelled in our apartment the other day. (Can you say "embarrassed" and "relieved" at the same time?!)

Finally, there's Trashy. He's my oldest's new cleaning friend, since he's the garbage hauler around here. Now, since we try to recycle, reuse, and compost as much as possible, our trash can go many days without needing to be taken out. We've tried using a smaller trashcan, but it leads to people trying to "make baskets" and making huge messes everywhere (that they, then, pretend they didn't notice and leave for Mom to step in at 2am on her way to the bathroom!) We've tried a lid, but that just concentrates the odor until it's released in one big stink cloud all at once when the trashcan is opened. I handed over the spray bottle of Trashy to my son and instructed him to give the can two sprays before he put the bag in, then two more inside the garbage bag. I wanted those little probiotics all over my trash. It worked wonders - no more stinky garbage!I can imagine using this in diaper pails and outdoor trash cans, too. In fact, I may just try it out on the dumpster when the weather gets warm again. When we get just the right breeze in the summertime, I have to close all of the windows or risk passing out from the terrible smell of that dumpster. I'll bet, if I spray the interior of that dumpster once a week, after the garbage truck comes by, I could probably keep that smell in check - nd send lots of little probiotics to the landfill to get working!

Natural House uses all plant-based ingredients that are eco-friendly and biodegradable. I really like knowing that they are working long after I toss my cleaning rags under the sink - an entire week, in fact! How's that for the biggest house-cleaning procrastinator in the world? And, I like to think that I'm doing a little extra long after the sink has been rinsed, the toilet flushed, and the trash has been taken out. Think of the probiotics that are being sent into the sewage system in the water. And what about the ones that are on my trash bag? If you can imagine more than half the households in just the U.S. using Natural House products, those probiotics could even turn around many of our polluted areas! Just by tossing a simple little packet into the sink and toilet once a week and spraying the trash can before putting in a new bag, I know that odors are controlled and those areas of my home are safer for my family (especially that little 3 year-old who loves touching things then sticking his fingers into his mouth!)

If you'd like to try out this revolutionary new cleaning products for yourself, you can purchase them directly through Natural House's Web site or on Amazon (great deal if you've go free shipping!) You could also enter to WIN A ONE-MONTH SUPPLY OF ALL THREE PRODUCTS! Just enter on the Rafflecopter form below!

*I've had problems with the Rafflecopter form loading properly on my homepage. It was suggested that I put in a page break before the form, so that's what I'm trying here. If you don't see the form, PLEASE just click on the title of this post and it should show up for you. If not, leave a comment on this post or get in touch with me on my Contact Me form so I can fix it!

The Very Best Classroom {#CarNatPar}

Welcome to the November Carnival of Natural Parenting: Kids in the Kitchen
This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month our participants have shared how kids get involved in cooking and feeding. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.

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I truly believe in unschooling.When I unschooled my oldest, we lived in California and I had to create a private school under the state's law. That meant a name for my "school". I chose "Learning is Life" because, well, learning is best done by merely living. We did something in the kitchen every day. Whether it was a science experiment with vinegar and baking soda or measuring the ingredients for play dough, my son was learning a ton of things. Once he chose to go to "real" school, though, his interest in all things kitchen-related waned until it was nonexistent. I just let it go and stopped trying to get him to try this experiment or bake that recipe with me. I was sad, but I understood.

Licking the beaters from his first cake-baking experience.

Then came Little Guy. He's a lot like me. He learns the same way and has the same type of intelligences as me. He was in the kitchen "helping" me (really doing stuff) when he was 18 months old. At first, we just had to keep going over the rules: No touching Mama's knife, Stir slowly - always!, Ask before you taste, No going by the stove or oven without Mama, Never touch the knobs on the stove. Because the kitchen can be a dangerous place, breaking the rules meant he'd get two warnings and on the third offense, he was done helping. He loved being in there with me, so he learned very quickly that those rules were never going to change and stopped trying to push his limits.

"Don't bother me right now - I'm trying to stir!"

Now, I really feel that little ones need to learn how to do things when they're interested and not when they're "old enough." So, as soon as I had confidence in Little Guy's understanding of The Rules, I let him begin helping with the more dangerous tasks - the big ones being stirring a pot on the stove and cutting vegetables. He was barely two years old when I taught him how to cook on the stove. He loves stirring and couldn't understand why I wouldn't let him do the one thing he was very good at (and proud of!) So, he learned about the hot fire under the pot. He learned about steam. He learned how to stir without splashing hot liquids.

Little hands knead bread perfectly.

 As he became more verbal, he asked questions that knocked my socks off. "Why did the dough get big?" (After we let our pizza dough rise.) "Why did it get like boogers?" (We were making gravy and he wanted to know how it thickened.) "What made it turn brown?" (When we pulled muffins from the oven.) All very good questions that I tried to give very simple answers to. "The yeast is like little guys. They ate the sugar and had to burp. See all of the burp bubbles in this dough that weren't there before?" "The flour we put into the juice from the meat sucked up some of the water (or is it oil?) and got fat. This made it thicken into gravy." And, "Remember the butter and eggs we put into the batter? They have something called proteins. When proteins get very hot, like in our oven, they turn brown. If we kept letting them cook, they would burn and turn black." Now, I know my answers aren't 100% accurate, but I was talking to a 2-year-old. He just wanted an answer, not a lecture. As he gets older, his questions will become more defines and I'll expand more.

How many spoons of peanut butter do we need?

In addition to learning science, he's learning math. We measure things all of the time. I always ask him to help me find measurements on the side of our measuring cup. He only recognizes whole numbers right now, so I ask him to find "1,2" if I want 1/2, for instance. We also do a lot of counting when we add ingredients - whether it's three cups, two eggs, or "one big spoon and one little spoon" of vanilla. We count pieces of carrot as we put them into the pot. We talk about time and watch our kitchen timer count down the minutes until our macaroni and cheese will be ready to take out of the oven.

Then there's reading. Little Guy is very interested in deciphering this reading thing. Just like his big brother, he doesn't like having everyone around him know how to communicate in a secret way that he doesn't understand. So, he knows many of his letters and the sounds they make already. When we cook together, I always take all of the ingredients we'll need out of the cupboards and set them on the counter where we'll be working. I make a point to read the recipe aloud while my finger runs below the words I'm reading. I'll read, "One teaspoon of nutmeg." Then it's his job to find the nutmeg on the counter. "Let's see, what letter does nnnn-nutmeg start with?" He'll get it right or wrong, doesn't matter. I'll either correct him or agree. The next step is, "Do you remember what an 'N' looks like? Can you find which one starts with 'N' for 'nutmeg'?" He usually gets it right! As he gets more comfortable with the alphabet and phonics (on his own!), I'll start asking about ending sounds, then middle sounds. Eventually, he'll be reading the recipe and I'll be searching for the ingredients!

History can be learned in the kitchen! This is where my oldest had the most fun. For over a year, he was very interested in all things medieval. We used out kitchen to learn about the Middle Ages more than anywhere else in or out of the house. We learned how to dye fabric using natural dyes. We did the old "castle out of sugar cubes" thing (we got a DK book and did a realistic replica that took months!) We made grog and tasted it - didn't like it! Once a week, we made a feast, using a recipe book we found at the library. We ate turkey legs with out hands, made bread and stews from scratch. We had to go shopping for ingredients we never heard of and had to learn how to make substitutions when we found that certain things just aren't available in the stores! We learned how people got their food - whether they grew it, bought it, or just did without. We learned about the weather back then and how hard it was for people to grow food in the cloudy and cold era. I haven't done a lot of history with Little Guy just yet. Past, Present, and Future are not something his mind is ready to understand just yet. I can't wait to see which time period he becomes interested in!

Crayon recycling. Look at the concentration on Little Guy's face - this is IMPORTANT work!

And, I think, that including Art and Music in the kitchen is wonderful. Whenever we head in there to create something, I put on music. I will choose something that goes with whatever we're making (for instance, country if we're making fried chicken) or that goes with our mood (upbeat for when there's excitement, something slow and relaxing when we need to concentrate on what we're doing.) And for art, well - we make lots of projects in there. We also make our own art supplies. We do the regular stuff, like play dough and recycled crayons. We also make glue, paint, and are going to make paper from junk mail and old clothes next month!

And, finally, there are those pesky "life skills" that are learned in the kitchen. Washing dishes, making your own meal, organizing cupboards, planning ahead (grocery lists), and general hygiene are just a few of the things they learn. Then there are the ones we don't think about: Emergency medical treatments (like when we learned about how you need to put cold water or ice on Mommy's burn.) And how to take things in stride and find solutions (like when we find out we're out of butter and are half-way through making a cake!)

Now, I haven't even touched on the part where they learn about where our food comes from! I'll spare you the novel and let you go check out some other posts in this month's Carnival of Natural Parenting. But, I need to tell you that my kids know about gardening and all the science that goes with it, how to find edible plants in the wild, how herbs can be used as medicine, how agriculture works, why buying your food selectively is important to your health and the environments... There's more, but I'm sure you get the point! The majority of our talks about these things occur in the kitchen as we use a particular ingredient.


Can you think of other ways that the kitchen is conducive to learning more than how to cook? I'd love to hear your ideas - Little Guy is at the perfect point in his mind where everything is interesting to him. The more ideas you can give me, the more I'll be able to help him learn in his favorite room in the house - The "Classroom".
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Visit Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

• Baking & letting go — Cooking with kids can be a mess. Nadia at Red White & GREEN Mom is learning to relax, be patient, and have fun with the process.
• Family feeding in Child of Mine — Lauren at Hobo Mama reviews Ellyn Satter's suggestions for appropriate feeding and points out where her family has problems following through.
• Children with Knives! (And other Kitchen Tools) — Jennifer at True Confessions of a Real Mommy teaches her children how to safely use knives.
• "Mommy, Can I Help?" — Kat at Loving {Almost} Every Moment writes about how she lets her kiddos help out with cooking, despite her {sometimes} lack of patience!
• Solids the Second Time Around — Sheryl at Little Snowflakes recounts her experiences introducing solids to her second child.
• The Adventure of Toddler Tastebuds — The Accidental Natural Mama shares a few things that helped her daughter develop an adventurous palate.
• A Tradition of Love — Kelly at Becoming Crunchy looks forward to sharing the kitchen traditions passed on from her mom and has already found several ways to involve baby in the kitchen.
• The Very Best Classroom — Alicia C. at McCrenshaw's Newest Thoughts reveals how her kitchen is more than a place to make food - it's a classroom!
• Raising Little Chefs — Chef Mike guest posts on Natural Parents Network about how he went from a guy who couldn't cook to a chef who wanted to teach his boys to know how the food we love is made.
• In the Kitchen with my kids — Isil at Smiling like Sunshine shares a delicious soup recipe that her kids love.
• Papa, the Pancake Artist — Papa's making an incredible breakfast over at Our Mindful Life.
• Kids won't eat salad? Try this one! — Tat at Mum in Search is sharing her children's favourite salad recipe.
• Recipe For a Great Relationship — Cooking with kids is about feeding hearts as well as bellies, writes Hannah at Wild Parenting.
• The Ritual of Mealtimes — Syenna at Gently Parenting Twins writes about the significance of mealtimes in her family’s daily rhythm.
• Kid, Meet Food. Food, Kid. — Alburnet at What's Next? panicks about passing on her food "issues" to her offspring.
• Growing Up in the Kitchen — Cassie at There's a Pickle in My Life shares how her son is growing up in the kitchen.
• Harvesting Corn and History — From Kenna at School Garden Year: The kids in the school garden harvest their corn and learn how much history grows in their food.
• My Guiding Principles for Teaching my Child about Food — Tree at Mom Grooves uses these guiding principles to give her daughter a love of good food and an understanding of nutrition as well as to empower her to make the best choices for her body.
• Kitchen Control — Amanda at Let's Take the Metro writes about her struggles to relinquish control in the kitchen to her children.
• Food — Emma at Your Fonder Heart lets her seven month old teach her how to feed a baby.
• Kitchen Fun? — Adrienne at Mommying My Way questions how much fun she can have in a non-functional kitchen, while trying to remain positive about the blessings of cooking for her family.
• Kitchen Adventures — Erica at ChildOrganics shares fun ways to connect with your kids in the kitchen.
• Kids in the Kitchen: Finding the Right Tools — Melissa at Vibrant Wanderings shares some of her favorite child-sized kitchen gadgets and where to find them.
• The Kitchen Classroom — Laura at Authentic Parenting knows that everything your kids want to learn is at the end of the ladle.
• Kids in the Kitchen — Luschka from Diary of a First Child talks about the role of the kitchen in family communication and shares fun kitchen activities for the under two.
• Our Kitchen is an Unschooling Classroom. — Terri at Child of the Nature Isle explores the many ways her kitchen has become a rich environment for learning.
• Montessori-Inspired Food Preparation for Preschoolers — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now shares lots of resources for using Montessori food preparation activities for young children in the kitchen.
• My Little Healthy Eater — Christine at African Babies Don't Cry shares her research on what is the best first food for babies, and includes a healthy and yummy breakfast recipe.
• Two Boys and Papa in the Kitchen: Recipe for Disaster? — MudpieMama shares all about her fears, joys and discoveries when the boys and handsome hubby took over the kitchen.
• Food choices, Food treats — Henrietta at Angel Wings and Herb Tea shares her family's relationship with food.
• learning to eat — Catherine at learner mummy reflects on little M's first adventures with food.
• The Night My 7-Year-Old Made Dinner — Melodie at Breastfeeding Moms Unite! shares how her 7-year-old daughter surprised everyone by turning what started as an idea to play restaurant into pulling off making supper for her family.
• Cooking With a High-Needs Toddler — Sylvia at MaMammalia describes how Montessori-inspired activities and a bit of acceptance have helped her overcome hurdles in cooking while caring for a "high-needs" child.
• Kids in the Kitchen – teaching healthy food choices — Brenna at Almost All The Truth shares her belief in the importance of getting kids into the kitchen using her favorite cookbook for kids to develop healthy food choices now and hopefully into the future.
• Make Milk, Not War — Tamara at Tea for Three remembers the daily food fights as she struggled to feed a picky eater.
• teaching baby birds about good food. — Sarah at Small Bird on Fire writes about the ways in which her family chooses to gently teach their son how to make wise food decisions.
• 5 Ways to Enhance Your Baby or Young Toddler's Relationship with Food — Charise at I Thought I Knew Mama shares simple ways to give your child a healthy beginning to her lifelong relationship with food.
• Toddler at the Table: 10 Creative Solutions — Moorea at Mamalady shares tips for preventing meal-time power struggles.
• How My Child Takes Responsibility During His Mealtime... — Jenny @ I'm a full-time mummy shares how she teaches and encourages her 32 months old son on adopting good manners and responsibilities during his mealtimes...
• Kids in the Kitchen: 6 Tips Plus a Recipe — Kristin at Intrepid Murmurings shares six tips for overcoming some of the the difficulties of cooking with multiple young sous chefs, and a recipe they all can agree on!
• How BLW has made me a better parent — Zoe at Mummykins shares how baby-led weaning has changed her approach to parenting.
• My Budding Chef — Jenny at Chronicles of a Nursing Mom is no cook but is happy that her daughter has shown an inclination and manages to whip up yummy goodies for their family.
• Kids in the Kitchen: An Activity for Every Age — Gaby from Tmuffin describes how she keeps her kids busy in the kitchen, whether they are one week old or two years old.
• The Phantastically Mutlipurposed Phyllo — Ana at Pandamoly shares how Phyllo is used to create enticing dishes at home! Anything can be made into a Struedel!
• Kitchen Kids — Laura from A Pug in the Kitchen shares her children's most favorite recipe to make, experience and eat.
• Independence vs. Connection in the Kitchen: won't you please get yourself your own snack already? — Lisa at Organic Baby Atlanta wishes her daughter would just go make a mess in the kitchen. But her daughter only wants to do it together.
• Grandma Rose's Kitchen — Abbie at Farmer's Daughter reminisces about her childhood and dreams of filling her kitchen with people, love, noise, and messes.
• Healthy Food Choices for Kids — Jorje offers one way to encourage children to make their own healthy food choices at MommaJorje.com.
• Cooking food to thrive rather than survive — Phoebe at Little Tinker Tales is trying to foster a lifetime of good food habits by teaching her children about the importance of avoiding junk, cooking healthy meals, and learning about the whole food process.
• Evolution of a self-led eater — Sheila at A Gift Universe shares the story of how her son grew from nursing around the clock to eating everything in sight, without her having to push.
• 10 Ways Tiny Helps In The Kitchen — Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama explores the ways in which her toddler actively participates in kitchen-related activities.
• The Complexity of Feeding a Child — Feeding children a healthy diet is no straight-forward task, but Lisa at My World Edenwild shares some general guidelines to help your child thrive.
• Lactation Cookies — That Mama Gretchen shares a fun recipe that will benefit both mamas and babies!
• 50 of the Best Books, Websites, & Resources to Inspire Kids in the Kitchen — Need inspiration to get your kids in the kitchen? Dionna at Code Name: Mama rounds up some of the best books and websites that can serve as a source for ideas, recipes, and cooking with littles fun.
• A 4-year-old's smoothie recipe — Jen at Grow With Graces and her son set out to make a smoothie without the usual ingredients. She let him improvise. See how it turned out.
• Independent Food Preparation (My Toddler Can Do That?) — Megan at Montessori Moments shares simple ways for children to prepare their own healthy snacks.
• Follow Your Gut — Amy at Anktangle shares her philosophy about intuitive eating, and how she's trying to foster her son's trust in his own inner wisdom when he feels hungry.
• A TODDLER-STYLE LUNCH + RECIPE — Manic Mrs. Stone photographs how to have messy fun during lunchtime with a helpful toddler.

Creepy-Crawlies - EEK! {#Spider Identification...PLEASE!}

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WARNING: 
This post includes spider pictures. If these images are going to haunt you for the rest of the day or give you nightmares, you may want to skip this post!

OK, so I really don't have a big dislike for spiders. They're kind of cool, actually. When one comes inside out house for a visit, I calmly escort him or her to the door. Smaller spiders who choose to take u residence right inside the door, or near  a hole in a screen are welcome to stay. They must follow two rules, though, or they will be evicted: 1) No making baby spiders inside, and 2) Stay in your designated area. My reason for this is simple - I don't want to get bit and I certainly don't want the kids to get bit. Most of the spiders around here are harmless, leaving just an itchy bite similar to a ginormous mosquito bite. I just don't want the trouble, you know?

Since our house is next to a large wooded area, we welcome the spiders that reside on our back porch. Hubby and I like to sit out there at night, but mosquitoes can be terrible around here in the summertime. BUT, we now have a very large and established colony of spiders out there now. They weave webs that essentially act as screens for our porch, catching all of the most annoying insects. I swear, I have had maybe 5 skeeter bites from sitting out there all summer!

Every once in a while, we run across a species of spider that is just plain different. Usually, its the shape of its body or its coloring. Every once in a while, it's the size. And, here is why I'm writing this post:

Oh, but wait! There's a story that goes along with this guy gal! Now, I'm the one who gets called whenever any type of creepy-crawly needs to be identified or removed from our home. So, when I heard, "Oh shit!" long pause, then wavering voice, "Honey, could you come down here?" I kind of knew what was coming. Hubby had been cleaning out under our porch. He stashed the stroller down there and was finally moving it to the basement (I've been nagging him for months to do this!) He was going to wipe some of the dust off of the stroller before storing it and opened it up. In the middle of the seat was this spider. Of course he jumped a mile. In fact, in his shock, he pushed the stroller out into the driveway... and down into the street. He called me because he was afraid to go get it. (Men!) I'm laughing at his "giant" spider as I walk to retrieve the stroller. I mean, come on - it's a spider and it's probably dead!

As I approach the stroller, I jumped. I really wasn't expecting this! Now hubby's laughing at me. So, what do I do? Yep, run up the driveway, pushing this spider toward hubby. I got a couple of inches from him and stopped. Spidey didn't. LMAO! I SO wish we had security cameras - I'd pay good money for a video of what happened next. Somehow, this spider bounced out of the stroller and... right - into hubby's hair. He's got long hair. It wasn't in a ponytail. He FREAKED OUT! This man was dancing around on the patio, shrieking, "GET IT OFF ME! GET IT OFF ME!" I'm on the ground laughing. I literally peed myself a little! You see, the spider hit him on the top of the head and bounced off. It was laying a good 10 feet away from him while he did his heebie-jeebie dance. Well, maybe you had to be there. It was a great show!

After closer inspection (and some clean panties!), I ruled that the spider was dead. So, hubby, trying to recoup some of his manliness, picks it up and chases my stepson around the yard with it. He plays puppet show with it. He examines it. Now, I had only looked at the thing for a minute or so. When he finally gives it to me for my turn, I realize that the big white thing it's holding onto isn't a craft pom-pom. I don't know why I even thought that in the first place - spiders don't craft in their downtime, do they??? Yep - eggs. That's when I begin to suspect that it's possible that this spider might even still be alive. I don't know much about them or their behaviors. I quietly set the thing down and go upstairs for a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Over my shoulder, I tell my husband to not touch his little friend anymore and to keep an eye on it in case it moves. He turned three shades of pale!

So, here are some photos. I need to know if this spider is still alive. Look at the first photo, above, closely. See how the eye is reflecting the light from the camera flash? I think it might be. If it is, where can I put it so I don't kill it, but the eggs don't hatch near our house? This species is just too big for me to be comfortable with around the kids and the cat. Some of the pics are a little blurry, but I want to show you the size and coloring. Any help would be appreciated!

Do You Know Me?

UPDATE!

Through the link that Momma Jorje gave me to Bug Guide, I was able to upload an image and here is the first response I received from Eric R. Eaton:

"This is a female fishing spider, Dolomedes tenebrosus. She'll carry that egg sac around with her using her jaws and pedipalps. Eventually, when the spiderlings are about to emerge, she'll suspend the sac in a "nursery web" she spins in dense vegetation. She'll then guard the sac, and the spiderlings that emerge from it. After the spiderlings molt again, they will disperse and mom will be free to resume hunting large insects. Normally, fishing spiders are ambush hunters that lie in wait for inattentive prey to blunder within striking distance. Look for fishing spiders mostly on vertical surfaces such as tree trunks, fenceposts, and walls. Wolf spiders, with which fishing spiders are often confused, *can* climb, but are most often seen on the ground."

I asked him a few more questions (like is this thing still alicve?!) and am anxiously awaiting his reply! Eric is a natural history writer and illustrator and the primary author of Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America. He also has a blog: Bug Eric

Keeping A Busy Guy Happy When It's HOT Out

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Yep, it's hot outside! Even with the sauna-like heat and humidity, I'm still going to say that I like summer best and this type of heat wave is to be expected at least once a year. I can live with it, but I'm not sure Little Guy can. We've had to keep him inside during the day, as the heat index has regularly been hitting the upper 90's and has gotten over 110 degrees F a few times in the last week and a half. Add 75% or higher humidity and you've got a catastrophe waiting to happen with this kid. He's like Forrest Gump - he MUST run everywhere. It's hard to wrangle him up for a drink of water. He just loves being free. I swear, the kid giggles the entire time we go for walks or to the park, only stopping when he wants to tell us something. You could pick him up off the ground and his feet would still be going.

When he doesn't get his daily outings, he can become a handful of trouble. He's got so much pent up energy that he needs to release that it can turn into fury. He just doesn't know what to do with himself. He'll end up hitting, throwing things, having tantrums over the simplest things... it's a nightmare. So, hubby and I decided to alter the whole family's timetable. We've been putting Little Guy to bed around midnight rather than 9:30pm. We stay up until 1 or 2am to get some alone time. Little Guy usually doesn't wake up until 9-9:30 in the morning now, instead of his usual 7am. Strangely, nap time has only moved back a little bit, but it's lasting longer (YES!)

What do we do while we're up so much later? We go for walks and head to the park! On our walks, we encounter lots of interesting creatures that you just don't see during the day. Little Guy and I have been looking for moths and other insects (and arachnids!) in trees, on lampposts, in bushes, and on our own porch. Check out some of what we found in just one night (the first three pics are of a moth that was about 3 inches long!):

My husband says he said his name is "Irving"

These guys remind me of Murano glass beads.

I've seen this type moth in some amazing colors - from brown like a leaf to fluorescent purple. They all are the same size with the same shape. Someday, I'll find out what they are.

In addition to our walks (or Little Guy's "runs"), we've been hitting the park. I've been having a ton of fun taking pictures blind - it's so dark there that it's really hard to see anything, especially through the lens of my camera. As you can see, the flash can be a blinding surprise!

Sometimes I caught some pretty cool photos by just pointing and hitting the button!

There are some drawbacks to taking a little one to a very dark park - if he's running faster than you, he can disappear into the night. I shot the above pic in hopes that the flash would show us where he went. Oh, and there are wild animals at the park. Little Guy was running toward the shelter, where people picnic. It has a nice trash can filled with all kids of leftover goodies that attract animals. Just as he got to the shelter, I saw the shadow of a small animal scurrying away. Then we noticed something... n odor. It was a skunk and Little Guy had surprised him. I took off like a bat out of hell toward the shelter, screaming, "STOP!!!" at the top of my lungs at 11:30 at night. I grabbed up Little Guy, praying that he'd still smell like citronella oil and NOT Eau d' Pepe La Pew. He was fine. That's when I noticed that every house across the street from the park had its lights on and people were mulling around on their porches and front yards. Oops - guess the screaming must've woke a few people up. After this incident, we kept Little Guy in MUCH closer range! 

Looking at the stars.

 We also took advantage of the lack of players on the tennis courts. Now here was a place that was partially lit and fenced in - our little freebird couldn't get too far away from us! He loved throwing his ball and chasing after it. Plus, we didn't have to run after him. We managed to sit down, drink our ice water, and talk! Oh, and I want to mention that, when we got home on the night these photos were taken, we checked the Weather Channel - the heat index, at 11:45pm, was 90 degrees!

So, what do you do when it's too hot for your little ones to get outside and burn off some energy??? 

***I just want to add here that the really cool bug shirt little guy is wearing is from Tea Collection - it's a prize I won from a giveaway on Abby Approved! Isn't it awesome?!