earn a free badge!

We need more merit badge tales! Send in your hilarious or poignant tale and if we publish it - you get a free badges! email submissions to amy at mamameritbadges dot com.

Happy Valentine's Pizza

We are not really into roses and jewelry around here. Special days are marketed with special food. So, today for lunch - it is heart shaped pizzas!

We woke up to a surprise of Dunkin Donuts (wow - sugar overload) and spend the day researching arctic wolves, making these (with the addition of some essential oil), going on a bike ride and are headed to the local art museum for some pottery.

Hope your day is as tasty and creative as ours has been!

story time

Story time is one of my favorite times of the day. It has been a part of my life for the last nine years and has rarely been skipped. We sometimes read picture books, poetry, or nature field guides but the majority of those years, we have read chapter books or novels. It started with all 3 kids laying in the family bed, with one nursing and the other two jockeying for positions as close to me as possible. Now, I happily sit in a comfortable chair, with a light and sometimes even a glass of wine. Even when some of the kids were too young to understand the richness of the language or exactly what was happening to the plot - they listened to my voice and the rhythm of language and were comforted to sleep.

Here are a few of our recent favorites:

 Ronia, The Robber's Daughter by Astrid Lindgren

Magical woods, coming of age, bravery, amazing girl character, adventure and moral choices.

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie

The original is so rich and even naughty. Really delightful!

The Wind Boy  and The House Above the Trees by Ethel Cook Eliot

Wonderful books written in the 20's. The characters go on adventures and quests that help them grow. They are rewarded for being true and brave and good. My kids could not get enough of these. In fact, they still think that "wind" is their friend and talk about him whenever a breeze hits them.

The Doll People by Ann Martin

This is the first book of a trilogy following a family of a 100 year old china toy dolls and their new friends, a family of contemporary plastic dolls. Mild adventures ensue as the families get to know each other and build a strong friendship.

 

The Wolfling by Sterling North

We are wrapping this one up right now and have really enjoyed it. It follows a year in 12 year old Robbie Trent's life as he bravely captures a new born wolf (who would have have been killed) and raised it to be a great pet and highly esteemed in the post-civil war Wisconsin wildness community where he lives. If you love Little House on the Prairie, this would be a great continuation of that genre.

What have you read recently that your kids really loved? Please share!

merit badge tales- Melissa

(image lifted, oddly enough, from Perez Hilton)

"After a long day of childcare and kid-intensive activities I had to accompany my son to a birthday party at Chuck E Cheese and I wasn't sure if they served alcohol. So I smuggled in some vodka to add to my soda in hopes of getting through the crowded, germy, screaming, sugar-high, kicking-and-screaming-when-it's-time-to-leave experience."

Have you ever done something to help you make it through a kid event? I usually rely on some Starbuck's, but I can see the allure of a cocktail at Chuck E. Cheese!

Hot Water Bottle Love

 

Am I so late on this? I have only discovered the wonders of the hot water bottle in the past few months. Maybe it is because I live in a horribly hot state and try to avoid all heat-y things as much as possible. Well, now I am in love. I learned about using a hot water bottle from my course work at Institute of Integrative Nutrition and this weird rubber blatter now holds a top place in our medicine cabinet. This is the one I have - you can order it for under 10 bucks on Amazon.

 

They are useful for aiding in digestion especially if you have had a rich or heavy meal. But they are gold for soothing kid belly aches. My kids get those nervous, kid-stress belly aches that make it hard to sleep at night. A warmed up hot water bottle sends them straight to the land of nod. I can not believe I am just now figuring this out. I have used rice bags before, but they cool off too quickly. And I am not a fan of the electric heating pads at all.

 Check out this sweet heart-shaped bottle from Victorian Trading Co.

Last night my 4 year old was up coughing all night. Every. Three. Minutes. He had that horrible, non productive, tickle-in-your-throat cough. After trying raw honey, propped up pillows, soothing drinks, and vicks on MY chest - he finally fell asleep, holding the hot water bottle to his little throbbing chest. It made him stop coughing! This is going to be my gift for new mothers for now on.

Covers can make the warmth last longer. I am going to make one from an old striped wool sweater. Check out these .....

How soft would cashmere cover like this be?

or this for a more masculine cover...

and perhaps my favorite...