A Mom’s Year – Page 49 – Creating a comfortable life one moment at a time

July 17, 2012

Museum Labels for Kids’ Art

When I hung up our Matisse-inspired art projects I finally remembered to make museum art labels. I saw this idea in an article called “How to Be More Creative” by A.J. Jacobs, author of The Year of Living Biblically and Drop Dead Healthy. The article was full of good insights like “brilliance is a numbers game” and “make an appointment with your creativity.” But my favorite was Jacobs’s idea—inspired by a trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art—to hang his his son’s drawings and put plaques next to them.

July 16, 2012

Country of the Week: Australia / Chocolate Crackles

After two weeks of “virtual” patriotism, we’re leaving the USA behind and heading to Australia. The kids decided this by vote, of course, but I warned them that if they chose Australia they’d hear nothing but “Australia! Australia! Australia! We love you!” all week from their father. (Monty Python fans will know what I’m talking about.)

So we started with our usual “What do you think of when someone says Australia?” to get started. Andrew pointed out that some of the things we listed are pretty stereotypical. But even that lends itself to discussion, don’t you think?

July 13, 2012

Country of the Week: USA / Low Country Boil

The best part about doing a Low Country Boil are the looks you get when you dump a big pot of food on the table. My kids thought I went crazy, but no, I just went Low Country.

Have you ever been to a Low Country Boil? I first heard about this culinary phenomenon from our friends in Atlanta who, I think, attend one every Christmas. So when I was pondering fun foods to make for our imaginary journey through the South, this seemed like a great idea.

July 12, 2012

Little Things / Beach Bag

I’m feeling very fond of this $1.99 bag from IKEA. It hangs cheerfully on a peg in the mudroom waiting to be tossed into the car for swim lessons or a day at the pool or beach.

My many years of mothering have taught me that being prepared is half the battle. We will lose goggles and we will run out of sunscreen. So I’ve learned to stock up early in the season. It can be painful watching the numbers add up, but it’s less painful than realizing we’re out of sunscreen on our way to the pool on a hot summer day.

At least a half-dozen pairs of goggles are kept in the bag so there’s no wail of “I forgot my goggles!” the minute we arrive at the pool. I keep an extra bottle of sunscreen and two or three sunscreen sticks in there, too.

The best thing about this bag is that it can hold enough beach towels for all six of us, plus snacks, with room left over for a few books and magazines. It’s plastic so it resists sand and water and can easily be wiped off, and it has a zipper so things don’t fall out.

It’s only a matter of time before Lexie realizes she can make a raincoat for her American Girl dolls out of the bag, so the next time I’m at IKEA I’d better buy a few more.

July 11, 2012

Using Our CSA / Cauliflower with Browned Butter

When I was a girl, every summer I looked forward to spending a week with my grandparents. They lived less than an hour away, but it was a treat to get to stay overnight at their house and enjoy their undivided attention. Grandma always cooked my favorite foods, we went shopping and played games, and I devoured books about the Bobbsey Twins, the Boxcar Children, and Nancy Drew.