Ticks in the Grass

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Last year I casually grabbed a weed out of the ground by my sidewalk. I threw the weed away, but quickly noticed something all over my hand. I looked more closely and realized my hand was covered in hundreds of the tiniest ticks I’d ever seen. I couldn’t get them off me fast enough! They were on my fingers, wrist, and under my watch. I was completely freaked out! I got them off, threw my clothes in the dryer on the highest setting and took a shower. It gave me the creeps every time I thought of it. With the very real risk of Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, ticks are not just gross but can be dangerous. I know two people who’ve had Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and both were extremely ill!

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Photo credit: sciencedaily.com

My current predicament is that my flower beds need to be weeded so badly; but I’m honestly freaked out at the thought of hundreds of ticks on those weeds.

Here’s why…according to tickbites.net

The life of a tick starts as an egg. Female ticks breed when on the host and drops to the ground to lay eggs. The female tick lays thousands of eggs which will then hatch as the climate temperature and moisture increase, to become a larva. A tick on the larval stage is known as seed tick. The larva is about 1/8 of an inch in size and has six legs but already looks like the adults. These larva staged ticks need to feed in each of the stages order to grow into the next one. Ticks are not capable of jumping therefore they use grass and other forms of plants to raise themselves to a certain height where they can easily latch on to passing animals.

 

So, even though I’m scared and grossed out, I’m going to glove up, spray lots of bug spray all over me, say a prayer and weed those flower beds.

Apples Up On Top

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I’m sure that most people are familiar with Dr. Seuss’s, Ten Apples Up On Top.  We decided to do a little engineering experiment to see if we could build a structure that would hold stacked apples. The girls were allowed to use whatever blocks we had. The building had to be at least three feet tall. It was fun to see just how much balance and planning had to go into holding the weight of the apples and being able to place the apples in a way where they would not all fall down.012

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They definitely figured out pretty quickly that it was best to have a wider  and sturdier block to hold the apples. The wooden blocks would only hold one apple and I was even shocked that it held that one. It was a fun little experiment.

Happy Independence Day

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Over the past year, I have learned about so many of my ancestors who lived here in the United States before what is now celebrated as Independence day. I can only imagine how elated many of them were when news finally spread to them that the Declaration of Independence had been adopted and that the land where they dwelled was now declared a new nation. This day brought them a new kind of hope and it changed their lives forever! I know that for most of us we just think of this day as a day for fireworks and grilling; but we should never forget that this date was the official beginning of our great nation. This nation was built by imperfect people, but they had great passion, perseverance, bravery and dedication to a cause that ultimately would change the world.

Photography

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I have to admit and I am sure that you can already tell, I am a terrible photographer. My oldest child, makes fun of me all the time because  I take such awful photos. Two years ago,  I bought a course on how to take better pictures. It is taught by National Geographic photographers. I still haven’t even watched one lecture. I also signed up to be reminded when See University registration opens again so I could do that. It is a series of lessons from world-class photographer,  Jeremy Cowart. (If you have 25 minutes, he has an amazing video about his life. I have literally told everyone I know in “real life” to watch it!)

So, I have the ability to begin learning how to take better pictures.  Why I haven’t I started? Sure, I’m busy, but that’s a really awful excuse because honestly, who’s not?!

Here are some of my terrible excuses for picture-taking and not picture taking.

I’m hardly in pictures because I always think I should look better, prettier, thinner, cuter, more polished, fill in the blank with an excuse.

I take pictures with my iphone because I don’t want to haul around a big camera and I truly don’t really know how to use it.

I don’t take pictures because I want to be “in the moment”. Let me tell you right now, that with five children, if I don’t take a picture, I’m likely to forget that moment.

I’ve already written about The Freckled Fox. She has her blog and thousands of pictures that she has taken or that others have taken of her, her husband, and her children. Now, that her husband is gone, these pictures are even more of a gift than she probably ever could have imagined. I’m so glad for her and their children that they have these moments captured. But, it got me to thinking about our family. I’ve been making excuses for not doing something that I will regret NOT doing later. Capturing these moments is a gift and I have got to step up to the plate to do it for the people I love so much!!

I don’t want my children to be looking through pictures when I’m gone and only be able to find a few. I don’t want them to miss out on remembering those special moments because I either didn’t take the picture or I took such a bad one that they can barely tell what’s going on.

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Look at this adorable subject: Imagine what I could do if I was actually good at taking pictures!

 

So, I’m going to watch a lecture and pick up my “big girl” camera and see what I can do. Wish me luck!

Bubble Birthday Party

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Last year, bubbles were the baby’s favorite thing.

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I ordered a birthday shirt from Etsy shop, boutiquesewunique.

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We had bubbles as the theme for his second birthday party. We had lots of bubble gum, actual soap bubbles, bubbles made from gelatin, and bubbles made from slime, bubbles made from food. We had bubbles made of everything.

I tried to make the foods as circular as I could to resemble bubbles. I made a fruit tray and balled all the fruit. I made cake balls. I got cream puffs. I made cheddar balls covered in bacon. I made rice krispy treat-like balls out of Trix cereal.

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We made a slimy bubble solution out of glue and liquid starch. We then raced to see who could make bubbles out of it with a straw. This was hilarious because it was very challenging. Most of the children quit and then adults just kept going and going.

I can’t remember where I got the recipe originally, but this site has one.

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Lillian got one too!

We then made bubble art. I placed bubble solution and washable paint in several different cups. The children had to blow into the solution to make bubbles and then place their paper on top of the bubbles. Several of them looked amazing. It was very messy and definitely requires an adult nearby.

We also had a bubble blowing contest. We went two at a time. Then we got to a small group of winners and had a contest between them.

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Blowing a bubble under pressure is hard!

We had a huge bubble pool in the back. I got a kiddy pool. Placed lots of dish soap, glycerin, and a little water  into the pool. I used about a cup of Dawn, 4 tablespoons of glycerin and turned on the hose until it looked like enough water. A child would carefully step inside (it’s VERY slippery) and then two children would stand on opposite sides of a hula hoop and gently life up the hula hoop up the top of the child. If it worked out, the child was enveloped in the bubble. It was my favorite activity. When everyone had done it that wanted to, we then just made huge bubbles. I bought a huge pack of different shaped wands. There were bubbles everywhere!

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I didn’t get a single picture with the kids inside the bubble, because I helped every single one.

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We had a bubble trivia game (of course)

 

                       All kinds of BUBBLES Trivia

  1. How many sticks of gum does the average American chew each year?

(A) 200  (B) 300 (C) 400

  1. If all 5 piece packs of Bubble Yum ever chewed in the U.S. since its introduction in 1975 were laid out end to end, how many times would it circle Earth at the Equator? (A) 2 (B) 5 (C) 7
  2. What is the official bubble gum of Major League Baseball?

(A) Bubble Yum  (B) Bazooka   (C) Topps

  1. When was the first successful bubble gum invented? (A) 1891 (B) 1906 (C) 1928
  2. True or False: Soap Bubbles are always elliptical.
  3. Soap bubbles are “minimal surface structures”. This means that they always hold the gas or liquid inside them with the least possible surface area. The geometric form with the least surface area is ____________.
  4. True or False: If three soap bubbles get stuck together, they will have one common wall at 120 degrees.
  5. True or False: A soap bubble gets its color from the light waves reflecting between the soap film’s inner and outer surfaces.
  6. Susan Mont”gum”ery Williams is the Guiness Record Holder of the World’s Largest Gum Bubble. How big was it? (A) 19 in. (B) 23 in. (C) 27 in.
  7. True or False: Bubble Wrap was originally designed to be a wallpaper.
  8. About (A) 200 (B) 300 (C)400 Million dollars worth of bubble wrap is sold each year.
  9. A painting by Hanneman showing children playing with bubbles is from the year (A) 1730 (B) 1630 (C) 1530

13 True or False: Youngsters who blow bubbles are most likely to find learning language easy.

We had bubble cake. We made bubbles to place all over the vanilla cake. This was done by mixing gelatin, water, and food coloring together. The ratio is 2 parts cold water to 1 part gelatin. Mix until dissolved. We then took balloons that we’d blown up. We dipped them into the solution holding onto the part you blow. We then placed them into muffin tins mouth part down. We let them dry for about two hours, then dipped them again. Any part that was too thin, we used a paintbrush to put on more gelatin solution. We let them dry for 48 hours. Then we popped the balloon and handled them very gently and placed them on the cake. I thought they turned out so cute!

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We had a great time at LBD’s second birthday party!

Disney: Cinderella’s Royal Table

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A few days before we were leaving for our Disney World trip, I heard that a company had been selling Disney dining reservations illegally and that Disney had stopped them. Because of this, there was now a chance that there were reservations available where there hadn’t been any before. I checked for dining reservations again and lo and behold, there was Cinderella’s Royal Table with several dinner slots open. We chose late reservations. We had arrived in Magic Kingdom later in the afternoon; but it was Extra Magic Hours night and the park was open until 1 a.m. We didn’t tell the children. We told them we were eating somewhere we had never eaten before. They guessed everywhere, but no one guessed inside the Castle! When we walked into the entrance of the Castle and went up to the desk for our reservation, all of the children were shocked and so excited!278

In the foyer, they got to meet Cinderella.

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No detail is overlooked, as is usual for all things Disney.

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photo credit: disneyworld.go.com/dining/magic-kingdom/cinderella-royal-table

 

 

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It really is special eating inside the Castle.The food was good. The service was better. The experience was the BEST!

The children all get a wishing star. The girls get a wand and the boys get a special sword.

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All of the princesses come to your table. They are all so very sweet. They actually came by more than once.

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We really had a special time and loved being able to surprise the children with something they had never thought of doing.

If you get the chance to eat at Cinderella’s Royal Table, I would highly recommend it!

A Disney World Surprise: Animal Kingdom

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When we booked our trip to Disney World, we were first planning on using points and staying at the Hilton. For weeks, I worried about fitting that many people into the room. I looked up ways to keep things organized in small spaces with so many people. My husband wasn’t too worried. That was until he looked at the room again and began to realize that there wouldn’t be any privacy for anyone. He realized that we would be listening to our girls at all hours of the night talking and facetiming friends. He called Disney to see if they had any availability the week before our trip. (I had checked online for weeks and hadn’t found any rooms available for our size party).  They had two adjoining rooms available at Animal Kingdom Lodge. We kept it all a secret from the children. We kept telling them to get ready to be cramped for the next week. We told them that they needed to stay organized. When we drove up into the parking lot, they realized we were staying there. They were beyond excited.

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Animal Kingdom Lodge is truly remarkable. We loved all the African touches throughout. It was neat to see artifacts from the continent and to learn a little about some of the countries. Disney does the most fabulous job at fully immersing its guests into the theme.

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We ate at Boma one day for a late lunch. I loved the food there. The sweet potatoes were amazing.

I have to say that it is truly amazing to wake up to giraffes and zebras outside your window! Seeing the animals night and day was definitely the best part! The rooms were great as well. We had a room with bunk beds and a full bed and then a room with two queens. It was plenty of room for the seven of us.

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The only drawback to staying at this location is the transportation. We waited more than 30 minutes sometimes for a bus. The buses were also almost always full. I don’t feel safe riding on a bus while standing and holding my 2 year old or having my children pressed up against a stranger’s body. This is the only complaint I have at all about the experience.

Overall, I really enjoyed staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I’m glad we got to experience this hotel.

Getting Ready for Shark Week

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When I was in the hospital with my first baby it was Shark Week. For years, we knew the start of school was right around the corner when Shark Week was upon us. For the past couple of years though, Shark Week on Discovery Channel has been in June. I wish they would’ve kept it the same time as always. Last year, I was planning all kinds of festivities to go along with the week. Then I realized I had already missed it. I was so disappointed! Since I know it starts this Sunday, I can use the plans I had last year.

Some cute ideas can be found at Community Table.

There are free printables at Pretty Providence

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Photo credit: Pretty Providence

Teachers Pay Teachers has a great little bundle all about sharks.

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Photo Credit: TPT

 

I bought a few things from Amazon. I got some shark plates, cups, and toys.

I know they sell shark fruit snacks at Kroger so I’ll be getting some of them.

On Monday, we will have a seafood dinner in honor of Shark week. I got the recipe from The Fresh Market. We’ve had it once before, and it is so good!

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Baked Blue Cheese and Lime Shrimp

Ingredients

2 lbs. 21-25 ct peeled & deveined shrimp
juice of 2 limes
1 stick unsalted butter
1/4 c. heavy cream
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese
2 oz. blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 tbsp. hot sauce
1 (14 oz.) box brown rice
– paprika, to taste
fresh parsley, to taste
Preparation

Preheat oven to 350º. Place shrimp in a single layer in a 9×13-inch baking dish; drizzle lime juice evenly over shrimp and set aside.

In a 4-quart pot over high heat, melt butter; add cream and bring to a boil. Add cream cheese, blue cheese and hot sauce, whisking until smooth. Pour cheese mixture over shrimp and bake for 20 minutes in preheated oven.

Meanwhile, cook rice according to directions on package; set aside and keep warm.

Serve shrimp and cheese sauce over cooked rice; garnish with paprika and parsley.

I’d love to hear if anybody out there plans on doing anything fun for Shark Week.

Keto Fried Chicken

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It will probably come as no surprise to anyone, but fried chicken is my very favorite food. I don’t actually remember my mom making it very often. I just know that it is one of my favorite foods. I like it crunchy and if I can get a little spice in there too, it’s even better. I rarely eat it. I probably went years without it. So sad! Then, my husband said, we can fry foods on keto. Eureka! I may be able to have fried chicken again.

So, one night we got adventurous. We coated the chicken breasts in egg. Then we dipped them in parmesan cheese.  We used the kind that comes in a cylinder on the shelf. Then we dipped it again and coated it again. We then put in into a fryer. We bought a small fryer for about $20 at Christmas time. We actually did all this outside because we tried this once before and it really makes a lot of smoke. Because the breasts we used were so large, (I guess those chickens had really been hitting the free weights hard) it took forever for them to cook. The next time we do this, we decided that we will make them into chicken fingers. That will make them more manageable and make them cook faster.

These are completely allowed on the diet because the have a lot of fat. Now, I still don’t eat them very often. I like them a little too much and go a little overboard. Also, while we can eat these kinds of fried foods on a keto diet,  I still prefer to eat healthier.

If you are like me, and get a hankering for some fried chicken while on a keto diet or even a gluten-free diet, then this is for you!!

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Keto Fried Chicken

2 pounds of chicken breasts or chicken fingers

1 1/2 to 2 containers of shelf stable parmesan cheese

Salt, pepper, any other spices to taste

6 eggs, beaten

In a medium to large bowl, beat the eggs. In a lasagna pan or large Ziploc, put the parmesan cheese and if you desire spices, add them as well. Drop your chicken into the egg, dredge in the parmesan mixture. Do this two times. When your oil is very hot, carefully drop your chicken into the fryer. The outside should turn a lovely brown. Use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. Place on a paper towel covered plate to help pull out any excess oil. This takes time when using a small fryer. You may want to keep them warm in the oven until all of them are done. 

Enjoy!

If you try this, please let me know how you liked it.

Reading and Listening: Audiobooks

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Since we use “real” books and not as many textbooks in our home school, we spend most of our days reading. Because two of my children are struggling readers and the books that they are “reading” are quite demanding, I usually read aloud. This is good for all of us; but there are occasions where I simply do not have the time or that they are just not listening to me because the baby wants my attention or they are just sick of hearing my voice. During these times, I have found it extremely helpful to use Audibles and LibriVox. Audibles is through Amazon and is a pay program. You buy the audiobook. I use it with my older child. She reads along as it reads it aloud. This was one of the recommended methods for her due to her phonological processing disorder.

LibriVox is a free program. People volunteer to read chapters or whole books. The books in this program are all public domain, so only certain books are available. We used it with Burgess Animal Book. I felt like the girls listened along much better and we were able to pause or go back and repeat if we needed to do that. I like both programs and would highly recommend both to anyone who enjoys listening to stories.

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Please continue to keep The Freckled Fox family in your thoughts and prayers.