Yard Art...

Before

After

 

I was digging through Hubbys junk  inventory...

I found this cool top to an old air conditioner...

so I decided to make it a yard art piece...

I liked the rusty...but it didn't really show up...

so....it was close to 4th of July....

had red...white ...and blue in my head...

a few cans of spray paint...

this is what I come up with....

Clean mud....

 this is the latest messy fun thing I have found...

it's all over blogs and face book...

you use one bar ivory soap...

gate it up....add one cup warm water....

 

 get one roll of cheap toilet paper....

 

 a big bowl or plastic container...

this was really to big...but added to the fun....

 have your handy helper or helpers...

pull all the paper off the roll...

while you mix up the grated soap and water...

 pour the soap/water mixture in with the toilet paper...

start kneading and smashing....

 you can roll it in a ball...

you can use cookie cutters on it...

some add food coloring...we were out...

some add a little glitter....

we kept a bucket of water near by...

for clean ups...

our hands were nice and soft...

and clean...after playing with...

the clean mud...

we will be doing this again...



Fun with rice...

I had seen something like this on Facebook...

so decided to give it a try ....



all it takes is rice...food coloring...

and a little boys imagination....

I put rice in a container with a lid...

added a few drops of food coloring...

and let him shake it...

we would turn it over to check the color...

then shake some more....

he liked jumping up and down to shake it....

hey it added a little cardio to the fun...

gave him measuring cups...measuring spoons...

a funnel...a shovel...a bucket and a truck...

he had a good time...

scooping it...driving in it...

putting it through the funnel...

kept him entertained for a good 30-45 minutes...



Frozen Treasure

I gathered up a few toys... Froze them in layers....

I mixed blue food coloring with salt...

I had Hotrod sprinkle salt on the ice...

He could hear it crackling...

Then he poured water on the ice..

He noticed it cracking...

He put it on the hot side walk and watched it melt more...

He dropped an pieces would fall off..

Slowly he was able to get the prizes out of the ice...

It keep him busy for a while...

Frozen chalk art

I saw this on face book and thought it would be fun....Frozen chalk...what better way to cool off...

and do art at the same time....

I used equal parts water and corn starch....
1/2 cup water..1/2 cup corn starch...

then I added kids washable paint...
just stir up and poor in
to the trays...

you can also use food coloring...
I had the frozen treat trays..
$1.00 at the Dollar Store....
put in the freezer to freeze...



well let me tell you my Hotrod had a blast...

he called it Gooey Goo.....

it dries chalky....and washes off super easy with the hose...

Uncle Bo's Sauerbraten

My great Uncle Bo turned 90 years old...

this is the photo my Mom gave him for his birthday...

 

Here is his recipe for Sauerbraten:

 

1 - 3 lb shoulder arm roast with some fat

Butter milk

Bay leaves

Peppercorns

 

 

Cover the roast with buttermilk.  Refrigerate for 24 hours

with bay leaves and peppercorns.

Remove from buttermilk

Sear until brown on both sides (crusty)

Cook in heavy Dutch oven

Cook on low to medium for 3 hours depending on size

half way through cover with buttermilk

Thicken juice with flour to make gravy...

 

Definitely not a low cal meal....

A little color fun...

I read this on a blog...decided to give it a try...

first you gather up a few clear containers...

then a few clear containers with squirt tops....

 



a bucket of water.....

let the kiddos fill up the squirt bottle...

Hotrod like the way they bubbled up...

 



when they were full....we added food coloring...

mine still had a bit of soap in them...

made for an easier clean up....

Hotrod had fun shaking them up...

 



Hotrod had his own way to mix up the colors...

he hopped up and down....

 



 

then we poured in the colored water to our clear containers...

adding colors...watching how they changed....

he used his motor skills....muscles...eye hand coordination...

all at the same time...

we tried adding water to weaken the colors...

adding more colors...mixing it up...

it was a fun lesson in colors...

and the best part it was water fun too...

there are endless possibilities....

A wood windchime....

I made this wind chime for my Mom...

for Mother's Day...I had seen

something like it on another blog...

I was going to do a project with my Hotrod...

but he wasn't interested in it...

so my little imagination took off...

I found sticks in my yard...peeled off the bark...

sanded with a emory board...

found it was easier than with sand paper...

hubby helped me put in the rings...

he just drilled a little hole...

then we screwed in the rings...

these are large...cause...well

when you send a man to the hardware store...

they go for big and sturdy....

I had a piece of driftwood...

that I picked up at the lake last year...

I just knew it would come in handy some day...

sure enough it did...

we put in more rings...

two on the top to hang with...

four on the bottom to hang the chimes...

we used fishing line to hang the chimes...

and rope for the hanger...

my Mom can't hear high pitched sounds...

but she can hear these clanking with the wind...

she has the perfect tree for hanging them...

she also added the red bandana strips...

cause...like me...she holds on to things....

you never know when they might come in handy...

it was an easy project...

and she loved it....

 

 



Worn out book ideas

this is the cutest idea...

for a loved...but worn out book...

SOURCE

just Modge Podge...

 the pages on a canvas or board...

or even your child's art work...

Colored pasta fun....

SOURCE

 

 

Nana's Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies- Foody Friday

 Today I'm joining Foody Friday

 

click on the link to visit....

This is my Nana's Recipe...

a family favorite...

every year she made these for the grandkids

and great grandkids at Christmas

 

1 stick butter

1/2 cup milk

2 cups sugar

3 tablespoons cocoa

mix and boil 2 minutes

Add:

3 cups oatmeal

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup peanut butter

Drop spoonfuls on waxed paper quickly.

Shape with hands while still warm...

let cool...

then try not to eat them...lol...

 

Puffy Paints

All you need is :

1 tablespoon self rising flour

1 tablespoon salt

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon water

Food coloring 

Mix the dry ingredients...add water until you get a yogurt consistency add food coloring... Paint on card stock paper... Thicker is better put in microwave for 30-40 seconds... Pull out...careful it is hot... You have puffy paint