Our costumes

Hi! I am Velma!

This is baby Scooby and Shaggy

Travis was not sure what to think of his mommy in a wig:)

My adorable baby Scooby!

My sassy Daphne:)

She threw that football right through the tire and seriously shocked those boys! 

That's my girl!!!

We did not get a family picture of all of us in our costumes...Boooo!

We were like celebrities wherever we went:)

I heard more than one parent explaining to their children that I was not actually 

the REAL Velma, but was just a mommy in a costume!!! 

I laughed so hard!

Next year I plan to make our costumes, but these ones are going to be hard to beat!

Carnival Booth: Fear Factor

Our schools' Parent Club put on a fall carnival last weekend.

Here are some pictures of the Fear Factor booth:

 Here is the front of the booth.

Here is the back. See the pitchers? 

They were filled with gooey things for the kids to reach into.

As you can see by the painted name this side was meant to be the front, 

but it just made more sense to turn it around.

The kids had to find the snake in the "brains".

They had to find a, uh, paperclip in the maggots(okay, so that one was a stretch, but whatever. Try to find a paperclip in dry rice...it's hard!)

These are floral beads that are REALLY gross to reach your hand into.

The kids had to find these eyeballs in the floral beads and it was super tricky but so much fun! The kids really loved the gross out aspect and the parents loved it too.

Any other great gross out ideas for next year? 

I would love to hear what you think!

I am linking up with some of these fun blogs:)

Cloth Diaper Tip

I have been too busy for all the fun projects floating around in my head and I hate it! Gah! Hopefully life slows down a little soon so that I can sew something again.

Until then I will share a little tip I learned on washing cloth diapers in a front loader:

Add a wet towel (or two) to your load of diapers to trick your machine into thinking it's a heavier load and allowing more water in the wash cycle. Wow! Totally made a difference in how clean my diapers got.

Making Baby Food: Butternut Squash

I Love Fall!

 I love butternut squash fresh from our garden...so does my 1 year old:)

Step 1: Cut squash in half and lay cut side down on a baking sheet. 

Add water to the pan to keep the squash moist while it bakes and check the water level midway through baking.

Does anyone have any tips on how to get that stuff off my pan?

Eew! No matter how hard I scrub it stays the same.

 Step 2: Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until squash is soft.

 Step 3: Let it cool and then scoop out the flesh.

Be careful not to get too close to the skin(that's where all the strings are)
and put it in a food processor.

I use the Magic Bullet and it works so great for making baby food.

Step 4: Puree until smooth.

Add water or juice to get it to the consistency that you want
(Thinner for younger babies, thicker for older ones). 

Step 5: Spoon into an ice cube tray and freeze over night,
then transfer to a labeled freezer bag.

When baby is ready to eat, pull out a few cubes and defrost!

Isn't that color yummy? 

Serving idea: Heat up a few cubes and toss with some whole wheat pasta
and some shredded zucchini.

Healthy and delicious!

I am linking up with some of these lovely blog parties:)

Stripping Cloth Diapers

I had to do this for the first time recently and thought I would spread some knowledge:)

Reasons for stripping your cloth diapers:

1. Diapers are no longer absorbing like they should.

2. Diapers smell strongly of ammonia no matter what you do.

3. Baby has had a yeast infection and it won't go away.

My reason for stripping was #3. Travis had a BAD yeast infection.

I switched him to disposables so that I could put cream on his infection(you shouldn't use creams on cloth diapers...it causes them to repel liquid). The infection would clear up and I would put a clean cloth diaper on him and by the time I changed him it was back!

What?!?!? I thought cloth diapers prevented diaper rash?

They do.

Yeast infections are caused by an increase of yeast in the urine or poop, not by being wet which is what causes diaper rash.

What I learned is that bacteria from a yeast infection does not wash out of cloth diapers or wipes! Yikes!

That's why the infection kept coming back...I was just putting the bacteria right back on his little bottom.

Stripping removes the bacteria.

I stripped the cloth diapers and the infection went away and has stayed away! Yay!

How to strip cloth diapers:

1. Wash diapers like normal

2. Run a HOT wash with Dawn dish soap...5 drops for HE washers and 1/4 teaspoon for top loaders.

3. Run 2 more hot washes with NO soap of any kind.

4. If there are still suds, then run another wash.

5. Dry diapers in the sun. The sun kills bacteria and sanitizes your diapers even more. (If you can't dry them in the sun then put them in the dryer like normal)

It made such a difference that I plan to do a strip on my diapers monthly!!!