Toilet Paper Roll Wreaths

My sister-in-law sent me a link to the blog "Creative Jewish Mom" where a woman had posted an idea for making flower shapes out of slices of toilet paper rolls and then gluing them into a wreath http://www.creativejewishmom.com/2010/06/recycled-toilet-paper-roll-wall-decor.html. Some friends and I got together and made wreaths. My friend Kimberly's wreath is the wreath with the big, bright buttons on it. They all turned out super cute, and each one was different. We found that using 9 petals on the flowers made the wreaths sturdier than fewer petals. You can embellish the wreaths with paint, buttons, scrapbook paper, glitter, and even put glue on the edges of the flowers and dip them in seed beads to make the wreath look sparkly. All you need is scissors, hot glue, white glue, embellishments, and your imagination!

Christ-centered Christmas Tree

I was trying to think of a way to incorporate the true meaning of Christmas into our Christmas tree yesterday, and I made some little ornaments that were super easy, fast, and cheap. I went to the LDS bookstore and bought a variety of small pictures of Christ. They were $.25-$.50 each. I punched a hole at the top of each one and tied a loop of ribbon and a bow. I then looked up a scripture to go with each picture, typed them up, then cut them out. For FHE we took turns pulling a scripture out of a container, reading it, then picking the ornament that went with the scripture. Then we hung the ornaments on the tree. It was super fun, and I really like how the pictures of the Savior add to our tree. We put a larger picture of Baby Jesus ($2.00) near the center of our tree, and it is gorgeous! I think I'll add more scriptures and ornaments next year. I just wanted to pass the idea along in case anyone else wanted to try it!

Thanksgiving Worksheets

Here is a link to some fun worksheets for Thanksgiving! There are pages for all ages in elementary school. There are fractions, cursive, crosswords, coloring pages, color by number, etc. http://www.tlsbooks.com/holidaypages.htm This website has lots of fun worksheets, so you can browse around while you are there. Below the Thanksgiving worksheets are Christmas worksheets. Enjoy!

Fun Websites

We're always looking for fun and educational (and sometimes just fun without the educational) websites for the girls to enjoy. I like to pass them along in case anyone else wants to check them out. We've found some fun ones this year for school....

www.nga.gov/kids/zone/zone.htm This is an AWESOME art website. Kids can make virtual collages, swirl art, and even add and remove elements from existing famous art. This is a really cool website. I tried it out to make sure it was okay for the girls, and I had a difficult time pulling myself away.

www.sciencekids.co.nz/ This website has some great science info. This is mostly for 2nd graders and up, but Jasmine (my kindergartner) enjoyed learning about the skeletal system of different animals. This is a great interactive science website. The only thing I don't like about it is the ads along the sides. Emily accidentally clicked on a link and was taken to a new website. This is a great website as long as you are close to help them see which links are ads and which are within the site.

http://www.sandiegozoo.org/animalbytes/ We were given this link today to go along with Emily's science lesson on amphibians and reptiles. It has movie clips of animals in the zoo, as well as all kinds of photos and info on animals. Emily really enjoyed watching the animal movie clips.

http:/boowakwala.uptoten.com/kids/boowakwala-home.html This is Jasmine's latest favorite website. We were looking for a website with music for Jazzy, and this website has fun little songs that she loves to sing along with. There are also games and cartoon clips. The animals have a French and British accent, so Jasmine sings the songs with the accents, which is rather funny. She also goes around saying "La" all of the time.

Artisan Bread

My mom and sister gave me a recipe to make artisan bread. It is from the book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. The recipe allows you to make a batch of bread dough that can be stored in the fridge for up to two weeks! You can have a fresh loaf of bread anytime you choose, and it seriously does only take around five minutes to whip up a batch.. I'll give you the simplified recipe version, so if you want further instructions, check out the book or the website http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/ .

3 cups lukewarm water

1 1/2 TBS Coarse Salt (Kosher salt works well, but plain old table salt works fine too)

1 1/2 TBS Granulated Yeast

6 1/2 cups flour (unbleached all purpose flour is what the recipe calls for, but I made it with

whole wheat flour plus wheat gluten and it was great)

In a very large bowl mix the ingredients with dough hooks and an electric mixer or stir by hand. The dough will be moist. Do NOT add extra flour. No kneading, either. I know, that's your favorite part, right? Simply mix until all the ingredients become a moist dough. Allow to rise uncovered for two hours. Push down the dough from sides of bowl, cover loosely with a lid (don't seal the lid or the gasses will build up and blow the lid off) to keep dough from drying out and keep it clean. You can now store your bread dough for up to TWO WEEKS!! in the refrigerator.

When you want to bake a loaf (you can do this on the same day you make a batch as long as you have finished letting it rise first) simply pull up a grapefruit-sized piece of dough and cut it off using a knife. Sprinkle with a bit of flour so it won't stick to your hands, and quickly pull the edges under to make a round shape. Sprinkle cornmeal or wheat germ on a cutting board and put the dough on it. Dust a bit more flour on top of the dough, then cut three slashes in the dough. These will allow the free-form loaf to shape nicely while rising and baking. Let dough rest for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven during this time to 450 degrees, and put water in a broiler pan or cookie sheet to create steam. Make sure this water doesn't run dry while you are baking, because the steam is what bakes the bread and makes an awesome chewy crust. After 30 minutes put the dough on a cookie sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes. You can make a larger loaf by cutting off more dough, but then you should increase your baking time to around 30-35 minutes. Even if the crust becomes very dark, it will not burn the middle.

This recipe will make four 1 lb loaves (made with the grapefruit-sized piece of dough). You can double the recipe, which is what I usually do because we love this bread. It slices well for sandwiches and toast, and I have used it for a chewy pizza crust as well. I'm sure you could also use it for breadsticks. This recipe is super easy, and you can have fresh bread anytime you want. As soon as you finish using the last of your dough, don't wash the bowl. Simply mix the next batch in the same bowl, and mix in the old bits from the sides and bottom of the bowl. This will help improve the taste of your bread by adding to the aged flavor.

I know this looks like a lot of instructions, but it's really simple once you make it a couple of times. Let me know if you have questions. Happy baking!

My poem from last semester

I wrote this poem last semester. I thought I'd post it....

Wedding Ring

On my left hand is a golden ring,
A circular symbol of eternal love,
Scratched from years of wear
Silently declaring to the world
I am taken.

I've worn my ring for so long
That it has created an indent,
A silhouette on my finger--
Like the marks left in carpet
By heavy furniture.

Its diamonds refract light
Into tiny sparkles and rainbows,
Light I carry wherever I go.
People say diamonds are a girl's best friend;
My best friend gave me the diamonds.

I noticed the weight of the ring
As it was lovingly placed on my finger
By a warm heart and nervous hand.
Now I notice its absence when I take it off,
Like a piece of me is missing.

I rarely remove the band,
Only to make bread;
The dough pulls our grime left from
Diapers, dishes, daily duties.
Maybe I should clean it more often.

I like the bits of grime and scratches.
They are tokens of the journey,
Memories etched in soft metal--
From our June wedding day
To purchasing a minivan

College, Coca-Cola, kids
Star Trek and McDonalds,
The birth of each daughter,
Date night every Friday,
Sunny days and stormy weather--

Holding hands through it all...
The greatest adventure of my life.

Wedding Ring

Last week I lost the center diamond out of my wedding ring. I was very disappointed, and I haven't found the diamond yet. I told Jim that since we were married in the temple we should have bought an extended warranty on the ring. Jim said that on the bright side, my ring lasted longer than most marriages. Ahh, there always is a bright side, isn't there?

Jim took me to Target and bought me a beautiful sterling silver and cubic zirconium ring for fifteen dollars to wear. It's funny, I have spent a lot of time reflecting this week about my wedding ring and its symbolism. You know what I've learned? My cubic zirconium ring sparkles just as much as my diamond ring (actually it sparkles more because the stones are larger), and it shows the world I am married just as well as my diamond ring. I actually really like me new ring, but I'll admit there is a lot of sentimental value attached to my other wedding ring. It's not the value of the diamond that is the loss so much as it is the fact that I have worn my wedding ring through everything over the past nine years. On the other hand, I now have a ring I can wear and not worry about damaging. I have a quote on my wall (it looks like vinyl lettering but I actually bought it at the Dollar Tree for a buck) that says, "The best things in life aren't things." I guess losing my diamond is a good reminder of that.