BELIEVE

 in Your Dreams

Good luck to my friend Mindy. She's dancing her heart out tonight in The Washington Elementary School Show,  Believe!
XOXO

...and the subject was Dinosaurs!

My daughter's 2nd grade dinosaur project was finally handed in today! What an amazingly talented little 7 year old we have. She produced her very own song, her very own memory game ( characters shown above) and her very own poster and diorama! wow! and of course a report went along with it!

She inspired me to create my own dinosaurs for some new birthday stickers!
which one would you pick? My 7 year old loves the Triceratops....and of course, my little 4 year old loves the Stegosaurus dinosaur getting ready to party! For more information on my dino stickers email me at
hstilluf@aol.com

Tomorrow i will be at school helping her class create a dinosaur cake!
In the meantime, we are going excavating.....

This is an easy project, perfect for afterschool snack time

Fossil Excavating with your Children and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Explain to your kids that Paleontologists have to work very long hours to dig dinosaur bones out of the earth. They have to be careful that the bones do not break. This requires them to have patience when they work.

 Have your child pretend to be a paleontologist in this fun at home science lesson.

Give your child a chocolate cookie, toothpick and a napkin. Have her try to excavate the chips from the cookie without breaking the chips, just like a real life paleontologist would dig a fossil out of the ground.

 It's fun to see the kids working so patiently.

After, they can eat the chips, and the cookies!

Have Fun!!!

In my last post i revealed the self portraits that my girls did of themselves...but, as they noticed, i forgot to include mine!....So, here is my self portrait!
my girls and i had a fun time creating these together! ....

Be Yourself...Creating Self Portraits with your Children

"Your soul is all you possess...take it in hand and make something of it..." Martin H. Fischer

....my girls and i spent the afternoon together creating our very own self portraits. we used paint, pencils, and magazines to create ourselves.

My 4 1/2 year old was full of excitement as she painted her beautiful red mane of hair...slowly, but surely...she knows who she is...no worries about being perfect or doing it wrong...she had fun and enjoyed spelling out her name with letters cut from a pile of magazines....

my 7 year old had a different approach...covering the whole paper with herself, as if to proclaim, :"look out world, here i come..." and never looking back

it was fun for them to explore their thoughts and feeling about themselves with paint...

why not take this weekend and create your own self-portrait...

remember, it's all about YOU!

"My heart filled with jou, my own little drum that i like to march by...: Gunda  Fijnje Nolan

Puppy Love

My friend shannon and her family recently added a new addition to their family....

Jackson

He is a handsome Goldendoodle. He's also the fluffiest, softest little puppy. What a love.

There's nothing sweeter than a brand new puppy that loves you no matter what....and is always happy to see you when you come through the frontdoor.

I've been on petfinder.com everyday looking for just the right doggy for our family...

we will have to wait and see!

This was the perfect weekend for a fire pit with friends. my hubby made some delicious ribs for a fireside dinner, and we feasted on homemade macaroni and cheese and cornbread. it was great to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air....i'm thinking spring is just around the corner....
here's my recipe for homemade mac & cheese....btw this is more for the adults than kids!

2 1/2 cups milk
1 lb macaroni elbows
1/2 stick of butter
3 T flour
2 Cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 Cup parmesean cheese
a pinch of salt
a dash of pepper

and 1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs for the topping, if you prefer

Preheat oven to 400F
bring pot of water to a boil and cook elbows until they are aldente, approximately 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile bring milk to a slow boil, then set aside. In a medium saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons of butter, and stir. When it begins to get foamy, add flour and cook about 5 minutes, until mixture begins to brown.
Then add milk a little bit at a time, until the mixture becomes smooth. Add the cheddar cheese, and stir until fully melted and sauce becomes thick. Use the remaining butter to grease a 13 x 9 inch pan. Pour the cheese sauce over noodles, season with salt and pepper and bake for 15 minutes in baking pan.
Top with breadcrumbs and bake approximately 15-20 minutes until top is browned...or until hot!

Yummmmmyyyyyy enjoy.

Sushi for Cats!!!
http://www.jakeandmicah.etsy.com/

i love this esty shop. they have the cutest stuff for cat lovers. check out the sushi catnip! Yum!

I bet olive would love just love it!!!

I love this new online magazine!

My new favorite online addiction is

Lonny Magazine http://www.lonnymag.com/
An online home and fashion magazine that Ican peruse through over and over again...right here on my laptop! how cool is that?
check it out and see for yourselves.

this month features one of my favorite bloggers
http://www.habituallychic.blogspot.com/