Month: October 2010

Banana Ice Cream with one ingredient…….

Okay..this could be dangerous……banana ice cream using only bananas!  Recently…while bopping around the Apartment Therapy website….I saw a link to the the kitchn website about how to make one ingredient ice cream using frozen bananas!!  I got so excited and how to try it right away.  I am always freezing bananas that are about to go bad…I have a freezer filled with bananas right now!  Normally, I make banana bread out of them…but that is getting boring…..so I gave this a try and it was awesome!!

All you do is cut the bananas up…freeze them for at least 2 hours…and then put them into the food processor..that is it!  The website suggested adding some peanut butter..so I threw some of that in there..and it was delicious….on the site they talked about the “moment” it turns to ice cream..and they were right…it is in the food processor…getting chopped up..and then suddenly…ice cream!  Happy Weekend!!

Apartment Therapy Color Me Contest…voting almost over…..

Okay……there are only 3 days left to vote……and today my room/hallway made it onto the Apartment Therapy blog as an “amazing” entry…..so, if you could please head on over there and vote for my room/hallway..I would appreciate it..though it is a pain to vote because you have to register with the site….but I do love Apartment Therapy…they have so many cool ideas!  And if you register with their site..you get their newsletter, which is always filled with super cool photos of super cool apartments…and houses!

Robot costume deja vu……

This year, River decided she wanted to be a robot…a pink robot….so..it took awhile..but today..we finally got started on making her costume…better late than never!  This time around, I knew what I was doing..since I made Quinn a robot costume two years ago!  First, I had to find two boxes that would fit her body…..

Then we had to figure out all the holes…eyes, mouth, arms, head…..etc.  Then I had to tape everything..and we had to start decorating!  Finally, everything was ready….and the glue was dry!

It was time to spray paint!  It is always fun seeing all the elements coming together…the spray paint brings it all together!  Right now..it looks like a giant lego….

Embrace the camera…with upside down chin faces….

It is Embrace the Camera time again…….from Emily and her blog, 3 boys and a little lady.  It was supposed to happen yesterday, but I wasn’t able to post….too much craziness!

So, we decided to have some fun……and we had a blast!  We had so many great pictures….and laughed so hard..I didn’t know which photos to choose from…..we did the classic upside down mouth/face photos!  At first, River thought it sounded too strange and wouldn’t participate..but once she saw how much fun we were having..she wanted to jump right in and have her photo taken!

Tuesday and I were upside down on the sofa…with a blanket covering the top part of our heads….and I was holding the camera……trying to take photos..but it was just too hard…and we were laughing way too much!!  Then, I decided to just take the photos normally…..(if you can call it that!) and then turn them upside down and crop them in Photoshop…so much easier! The first set of photos are of Tuesday and I…..

Then there are some of Quinn and I…..

And the last one is of Tuesday and River……We had an awesome time!!

Have a great Friday and enjoy your weekend…go take some great photos with your kids!!

Drawing with Pastels and paper mache paste…..

Today River wanted to use pastels…she uses them sometimes at her art class and she’s been wanting to use them again.  So, I wanted to come up with a fun little art project using them in a different way.  I found this project on the KinderArt website.  They have a lot of great ideas!

First, we needed to get the supplies together……paper (I like to use thick watercolor paper….it works very well when you are using a “wet” medium!  But you could use any type of paper that you have!!), a brush, a container with a bit of water, cornstarch, glue, and pastels.

You have to make the paper mache paste…and there are many different recipes you can use..I like to keep it simple and just take a little bit of water, glue and corn starch.  Mix them all together and you’ve got it..simple.  Then, you want to take your brush and spread it across your paper…get it nice and wet!

Then, just start drawing..or having your little one start drawing!  The paper mache paste makes the pastels glide on much easier and they have a more vibrant color.    I think children really enjoy using the pastels this way because it gives them a different texture….more like a thick paint.   If the paper starts to dry out..just reapply the paper mache… (if you go over a section that has been drawn on..it may make the drawing spread a bit..so be careful…though this is a neat effect…..)

River really enjoyed this project and worked on her drawing for a long time….she does a great job filling up the whole paper…some children have to be encouraged to spread their work out…they get a giant piece of paper and only work on a small area….

She made sure to use every color in the box!  This was a very easy art project that got great results!

Cars…

Time and time again…it seems like certain toys are always the favored ones…..one of them are the Matchbox cars and tracks.  I loved these when I was a kid…and so did all my brothers.  I can remember having to take a nap in my crib…while my brothers were playing with the cars in the hallway…one of my earliest memories…..

Tuesday and Quinn always loved playing with them…and now so does River…..she loves finding out which cars work the best….and which cars don’t seem to go at all…..