Life..

Busy, busy...

Not much to say... Life has been busy ever since school started again and now my 16-year-old is having one of his spells (Complex Partial Seizures - his last 10-14 days and sometimes longer) as of this past weekend, which was what drove me to working from home. 

I'm also trying to find more ways to make money from home. Trying to climb out of the hole we're in. Hopefully, something will work out soon.

Change...

I have a ton of change happening in my life right now. All change for the good. Hopefully, I'll have time to blog about it soon - maybe tonight.

Sesame Street: ABC's of the Swamp

Gotta Love Kermy.  :)

Video By:  Sesame Street

Sesame Street: A Song About Elmo

Two of my favorite people, Elmo and Adam Sandler.  This is just so cute!!

Video by:  Sesame Street

Carmen's Mommy Tips: How To Stop A Bath Tub Tantrum

Bathtub Tantrums

How I Stopped Bathtub Tantrums

photo credit: dianecordell via photopin cc

I am so happy to say that I no longer have to deal with this with my 2-1/2-year-old daughters. Why were they having tantrums in the bath tub?

Well, it sure wasn't the bath itself. The bath was fun. It was getting out of the bath that was not fun and created the tantrum. They didn't want to get out.

So what do you do when you have a toddler that's screaming their brains out because you removed them from the bath tub? Run for your life. Just kidding . . .

Distraction

Distract them with something else, preferably something colorful that looks fun, or maybe just something as simple as a cup or anything they'll find intriguing so the screaming stops. Your best bet is prevention and this is what I now do and it works like a charm. Not only does it prevent tantrums, but I have twins, like I said, and I had another problem that I was dealing with.  

And that problem was taking one twin out of the bath tub and getting her to stand or sit still while I took her sister out and dried her off. Now I no longer have that problem either. Not only do I not have to deal with the tantrums but my one daughter sits very nicely while I take her sister out. Here's what I do and it works...

When it's time for the child or children to get out begin removing things from the bath tub. Wash cloth, cups, toys, but leave them with one toy each. Begin draining the tub and make it exciting that it's time to get out now! I get excited with them and say, "it's time to get out now! Come on! Let's go! Yayy! Good girl! Very good girl! What a good girl!" Lol, you get the picture. I ham it up and they eat it up.

Final Thoughts

The first time or two they might fight it a little, but eventually it works like a charm. I take the twin out that's easier to get to sit still first while I dry her sister off. I wrap her in her towel and guide her over to a little stool in a safe area of the bathroom and she sits so nice. She even thanks me sometimes; it's adorable. Probably because mommy keeps telling her what a good girl she's being.

So this is what works for me; maybe it'll work for you too! Good luck!

Carmen's Random Tips: Can You Use Powdered Sugar In Coffee???

The Dreaded Coffee Crisis

What to do if you're out of sugar?

photo credit: Rayani Melo via photopin cc

First of all, if you're asking that question and seeking the answer it means that you're probably out of sugar and are desperate for a replacement to add to your coffee or tea until you can get to the store!

I just went through this recently. And then I hit "Google" and found out that you can use confectioner sugar in coffee, but that it can make your coffee lumpy because confectioner sugar has corn starch in it.

So, can you use powdered sugar in coffee?  We know they say you can, but how does it taste?  Well the verdict is in - you can use it in a pinch (pinch = emergency situation).  And it didn't make my coffee lumpy.  I put it into the cup before I added my coffee, so maybe that's why.

Now if you are not a coffee or tea drinker, then you don't realize that being out of sugar, or creamer, or milk or whatever it is that you put into your coffee or tea to get your caffeine fix of the day is in fact an emergency situation.😲I normally use three small spoons of sugar in my coffee, so it took two tablespoons of powdered sugar to give me the same taste.

What do you do if you're out of creamer or milk?

If you're out of milk or creamer and have whipped cream on hand, then try a shot of whipped cream. I have done this a couple of times. The whipped cream is definitely not the same as using creamer or milk, but it does the trick until you can get to the store! You can also try a little bit of heavy whipping cream if you happen to have that on hand. I've tried that as well... Yes, I always run out of something!

Carmen's Random Tips: How do you get pen ink off skin?

Tips on How to Get Pen Ink Off of Skin

Remove Pen Ink from Skin Easily

photo credit: Pauline C. E. Kaspar via photopin cc

This is going to be short, sweet and straight to the point.  Have you ever gotten pen ink on yourself by mistake or maybe you did it deliberately when you were younger?

I've actually done this as an adult; if I have to remember something really important when I'm out I'll write it on my hand. Yes...my memory is that bad, although I haven't had to do that in a while...

I've also had teenagers write on themselves or their friends wrote on them on purpose... I have told them not to do this because of ink poisoning even though I've done it myself (coughs). However I've just never done elaborate art work on myself... Okay, so recently one of my daughters got a hold of one of my pens...

This Is What Works

I usually keep them where they can't reach them, but one of the Rugrats managed to find one. She proceeded to draw on her arm with it before I grabbed it from her. So how do you get pen ink off of skin? Here's what worked... That night when I gave my daughters their bath I used coconut soap, which by the way I forgot to add in my "Favorite Soap For My Kids" post that I also love coconut soap.  

I was using that because I was out of oatmeal soap and would you know that one swipe of a soapy wash cloth took the pen ink right off? I didn't even have to scrub. It just wiped off like it was nothing. So definitely keep some coconut soap on hand in case you ever have to get pen ink off of skin.  

Not only is coconut soap good to remove pen ink off of skin, but it's also just a great soap that smells lovely! And did I mention it smells heavenly? I have only tried the Soft Soap brand of coconut soap, so I'm not sure how well other brands work. Although it does look like they all have good reviews on Amazon. I bought mine in Walmart. though.

I should add that Huggies baby wipes work good too to remove get pen ink off of skin...

So much for being short and sweet.  :)

With Love,

Carmen

Beautiful Videos and Songs: The Don't Quit Poem

Video by:  Inspirational Videos

The Don't Quit poem is my very favorite poem in the whole world and has been my favorite ever since I was about 20 years old, which was when it was first given to me. I have shared this with many people I know personally over the years and will continue to do so. I also blogged about it. Not here, but on one of my other blogs. It's the most beautiful inspirational thing ever. It was given to me at a time when I needed to be lifted up. May it lift YOU up too! Don't EVER Quit! No matter how bad your circumstances seem or are, mind over matter...

Mary Had A Little Lamb

Video by:  HooplaKidz

This video is too cute and my daughters LOVE it.  Plus it takes me back to Kindergarten for myself.  Yes, I have vague memories of Kindergarten lol.  I remember I had a dress with 3 or 4 little lambs on it and I "think" my teacher told me I was a lamby.  This song makes me remember my lamby dress.  :)

The Last Half of The Summer Was Cool - Hmmmm

I will take this as a blessing that I did not have faith in. Before I bought my air conditioners, I prayed that the rest of the summer would be cooler compared to the first half, because we were really suffering. I did not have faith in my Lord, so I took money I didn't have and bought three air conditioners.  

Within maybe two days of my air conditioners arriving, the weather cooled down and has remained in the 80's or very low 90's through out the month of August. One week was even in the 70's. If only I had had faith...

Yeah, So This Is How My Day Started...

Adventures in Parenting

Almost Back to School

photo credit: marsmet553 via photopin cc

Well I had two mornings left before school starts for the boys and hoped to make those two mornings as relaxing as possible. Now, that's funny! That's always a nice thought. So here's how my day started...

Before taking a bath, I had to clean out these two big drink coolers for my 12-year-old son because he was planning on doing a lemonade stand in front of our house with a couple of friends today.  

The two coolers belonged to his friend. They were clean inside but the outside was really dirty like they had been stored outside. So I wasted some of the hot water I needed for my lukewarm bath by cleaning these two containers, which wasn't asked of me until the night before.  

I already saw my relaxing morning slipping away from me the night before when I caught my 12-year-old trying to clean them out himself and had to stop him because I needed to give my 6-year-old a bath. I said, "I'll do it in the morning." Sigh... By the time I was done the water wasn't that warm for my bath.  

I'm trying to hustle in the bathroom with blow drying my hair, etc. before my girls got up. I left the bathroom to go downstairs and told "someone" to not go in the bathroom, because I wasn't done. "Someone" goes into the bathroom anyway because apparently they needed to use the bathroom urgently.  

When I left the bathroom there was a lot of toilet paper in the toilet from me doing my morning things. Wiping my nose, blotting my face, using the bathroom, etc. I do these rituals every day and always flush and pick up before I leave the bathroom, which is why I told "someone" to not go in there. I wasn't done.  

Well, part of the reason. The main reason was that I wanted to finish the little bit of "me" time I had left. I really have to scrounge for "me" time around here. I'm lucky if I get the time to bathe and even drink water sometimes, really. I come upstairs and hear "someone" yelling that the toilet was flooding!! That is when I started to scream, especially when I saw water just about all over my bathroom floor!  

I screamed inhuman sounds that I never knew I was capable of making and began throwing towels everywhere. And then screaming some more like a banshee woman, because water was going and going and. . . going. I finally cleaned up all of the water with towels and then spent the next hour cleaning the floor and toilet with Lysol.  So, yeah, that's how I spent my relaxing morning... One more day left before school starts. Yay!! :D

Beautiful Videos and Songs: An Interview With God

 

Video by:  interviewwithgodsite