Keep Young Ones From Losing Interest in New Toys With This Tip!

We all know how quickly children can loose interest when it comes to toys.  However, there is a way to keep toys fresh like a few from Christmas without spending extra money for constantly replacing them. 

Do try to box some of those toys up and hide them for a while.  Though this may sound mean, but you are not depriving anything to those very young children in the least.  Instead, they will focus on the ones before them and forget about what is no longer there. 

Once you notice their interest is waning in their current selection, then it is the perfect time to pull out that stash of toys. 

Make it fun for them and wrap up that box with a pretty gift wrap or even take apart a brown grocery bag for them to unwrap when you present it like another gift.  Watch the excitement on their little faces as they peel away that paper and peer into yet another gift.

Another inexpensive way for those little ones to have fun is saving any big box for them to play in.  Allow them to explore the interior and use it to hide or sit in.  Watch them play with that box for hours while suddenly neglecting those toys.  Those faces will light up as you open up another avenue for them to use their imagination.

I dare you to try this with your own very young children.  You will save yourself some money and also multiple their happiness with fresh fun and possibilities! 

Use Leftover Mashed Potatoes and Make My Delicious Dumpling Dinner!

I went to a Farmer's Market two weeks ago and bought the biggest cabbage I have ever seen.  Since then, I have been getting great use of that one $2.50 purchase.  Cooking with fresh cabbage is economical and sweetens up recipes in a surprisingly delicious way like in this recipe I want to share with you today. 

I had some leftover mashed potatoes in the refrigerator than I wanted to use up besides more cabbage so I turned it into a dumpling dinner.  I like to add cottage cheese and eggs for protein besides the mashed potatoes and flour. 

Another nice thing about this recipe is the lighter texture than traditional dumplings due to the baking powder.

Let your children give you a hand when you turn the dough onto a floured surface.  Shape the roll and cut it into little pieces.  If you don't mind a little flour on the flour, it is a wonderful learning experience to show your child how to take a piece of dough, roll it in some flour, and then work with him or her as a team to form the dumplings. 

The cooked dumplings will be added to some finely chopped onion and thinly sliced cabbage that were browned in olive oil and a tablespoon of a margarine.  This combination will be so tasty over your dumplings.

You can serve them just with the onion and cabbage mixture or add a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese or a little sour cream is also fantastic.

Seriously, I have never eaten so much cabbage in my life and really think it helps stretch your food budget.  However, I will be buying more monster heads of cabbage!  Honestly, you will love the natural sweetness and texture it provides to your recipes. 

My Potato-Cottage Cheese Dumplings!

1 tablespoon of margarine
1/4 cup of California Olive Ranch Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Bold & Peppery)
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
3 cups of thinly sliced fresh cabbage
2-1/2 cups of flour  (up to 1 cup more)
2 eggs
1 cup of cottage cheese
1 teaspoon of baking powder (Rumford does not have any aluminum)
1 teaspoon of salt
2 cups of leftover mashed potatoes

Mix your mashed potatoes, baking powder, salt, cottage cheese, eggs, and flour in a large bowl and then turn out onto a floured surface.  (You may need to add up to one cup more flour, depending on the humidity.  Sprinkle some flour so it's not really sticky to your fingers.) 

Form a long dough rope.  Get a knife and cut into little pieces.  If this is still sticky, add a little more flour to your work surface and guide those small cut pieces, a little at a time into that flour.  Shape and roll those floured pieces, one at a time, in the palm of your hand.

Put the finished dumplings in a pot of boiling water.  Cook until they start to come to the top of the pot.  Drain into your colander.

Then add the cooked dumpling to the frying pan that you already browned the chopped onion and thinly sliced cabbage in your olive oil and tablespoon of the margarine.  Coat those dumplings first and then serve.

This dish is tasty and comes in handy when you have leftover mashed potatoes.

Here's an Easy Method to Get Children to Put Their Toys Away!

How many times do you constantly remind your young children to put their toys back where they belong?  Regretfully, those requests can often fall on little deaf ears.  Nonetheless, there is a  helpful way to deal with that frustrating problem.

The next time trucks, dolls, and monsters alike are scattered throughout the house, you can start by issuing a warning that any left around will go into a special box.  You might call it the NO PLAY WITH TILL WEEKEND box where the toys will remain until Saturday rolls around.

Of course, children will want to test your resolve on the matter.  You could give them an initial pass the first time it happens before seizing the toys in question.  However, the second time your children leave those toys about, then it is time to take action.

You must remain firm when you gather up those neglected toys and not allow your children access to them until the weekend as they were told.  Do not allow their complaints to weaken your reserve or no improvement to the situation will be made.

When they complain and want back a specific seized toy, then explain calmly why they cannot have it until Saturday.  Instead, you should hand them another toy, book, or get them to help you with a small chore to keep them occupied.

You will be amazed at how quickly those same children will remember to pick up their toys the next time they play with them! 

Are You Ready for Halloween?

Halloween is only a few weeks away.  Now is the time to think of costumes for your children.  You can save a bundle if you get creative and make one yourself.  

I remember when my mother turned me into a rabbit one year complete with tall standing ears.  I was in the third grade. She fashioned a white outfit with bright pink rabbits that went over my coat so that I would stay cozy and easy to spot.   For the ears, she built a frame for each ear with aluminum foil, wrapped more of the matching rabbit costume material around each side, and turned it into a rabbit helmet that tied at my neck.

I was always big for my age.  Now imagine running across a rabbit-girl with ears at least a foot tall on Halloween who must have looked like Harvey!  In fact, I won a prize that year in the school's Halloween parade.

My mother put a lot of love and effort in sewing that special outfit for me and it always brings back fond memories of the year of the rabbit. 

Sewing your own costumes can be thrifty in more ways than one. I even got double duty out of that rabbit suit later as pajamas. 

Whether you make or buy your child's costume, be sure to get something bright so he or she will stand out in the dark to avoid being hit by cars. 

Another important thing to remember is how cold it can get in the fall so pick up costumes that are big enough to fit over coats. 

Make sure you pick up a flashlight and batteries for trick-or-treating night.  Equally important is to supply your child with a material tote bag to carry candy.  Paper bags can break and cause  chaos and candy littering everywhere when they do.

I prefer taking the children out and delegating candy detail to the hubby. This is great exercise and way easier than that constant up and down with the doorbell. 

A pancho is not a bad thing to have with you.  If it drizzles, you can always throw one on your child at the last minute.

Whatever you do, just have fun and do stay safe with your child.

Ways to Encourage Your Children to Cook!

Helping your children take an interest in cooking and baking is a good thing.  Not only will they learn an important lifelong lesson of being self-reliant when it comes to meal preparation, but you can help teach them some other valuable lessons as well.

Cooking and baking require measuring.  Sometimes, you need to adjust recipes and work with fractions, which is a great way to sharpen their mathematic skills.

Learning to cook and bake can build confidence when your child masters, perhaps, a favorite recipe.  Praise that acquired new skill and watch that child exceeding beyond your expectations as he or she wants to make something more complicated or learn more.  You might even have a budding chef in your midst. 

Do not criticize only suggest when a mistake is made, otherwise, you will discourage them from wanting to continue.  Everyone makes mistakes so just be patient with the extra dishes, tasting spoons, or the coating of flour now on your floor or any accidental spills!  This is a valuable lesson for you in gaining patience just as much as it is for your child.

Teaching your child to cook and bake can be a fun activity for both mother and child, especially if you start out making the child's favorite recipe together, side by side as a team.  Read the recipe together and walk your child through each step of the process.  Don't assume that just because you understand how to read a recipe that a non-cook does.  Ask your child if he or she understands and has any questions about the instructions.

For example, your child may ask how long does it take to cook potatoes before you can mash them.  You may reply twenty minutes is about right.  However, you may fail to provide that little detail about stabbing them first to test if they are soft enough because it comes naturally to you. Trust me, but mashing semi-cooked potatoes is like serving up a plate of glue that even dogs will refuse to eat.  I know because I forgot this little detail once.

Another important lesson is helping them appreciate the loving efforts that go into cooking and baking for your family.  A person only understands another person's situation is if they personally experience it.   Cooking and baking will develop their compassion and understanding for you and later a spouse.

Take your children grocery shopping with you.  Show them the fresh fruit and vegetables and give them lessons in proper selection.  Help them learn to read the ingredients on the back of jars and boxes of what is healthy and what is not is.  This serves as a wonderful introduction into nutrition and healthy eating. 

Finally, you can help them understand cost and comparison, which is another vital lesson to be had when you compare one product at the grocery store over another.  This is the perfect way to teach children the value of a dollar.

Need to Keep Kids Happily Occupied During Road Trips?

Making a long trip in the car with children can be a challenge.  However, if you grab a bag and pack a drawing tablet, crayons, an Etch-a-Sketch, and Play Dough and one old sheet cake pan for each child to use as a makeshift desk will work well to stimulate their imagination.  Encourage them to draw or build something that caught their attention along your journey to spark their creativity.

Try to play a game with your small children with "what if" questions to develop a continuing story.  For example, "what if" you were famous what would you want to do?  The next child has to jump in, "I would be a dancer.  Another in the car would ask, "What if the dancer broke her leg and couldn't dance, what would she do?  The plot line of the story can change in any direction.

Map out the trip with your children can be fun for them.  Show them the distance and keep estimates along the route can help improve their mathematics as well.

Guidebooks are wonderful to read together with your children.  Plan ahead of what you will pass on the road or once you arrive to your destination of what you want to see.

Pack some food for your trip to keep handy.  Fruits, cooked chicken, sandwiches, cookies, drinks are important if you need to make time.  Sometimes, you need to travel far and finding places to stop to eat or even rest stops can be hard to find.

Take care and have a wonderful Memorial Day.  Please drive safely!