The CommonSenseMom

Obey Right Away, All the Way, With a Happy Heart!

2008-05-10T14:49:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, I mentioned something that we learned from Growing Kids God's Way. Another thing that stuck with us was the definition of obedience. For a child to truly obey an instruction, they must complete it:

Immediately
Completely
Without complaint

We liked this definition, but those are pretty big words for a 2-year-old to grasp.

Then, one day, I was having dinner with a group of ladies. One of the 2Moms mentioned her version of this concept, and I thought it was fabulous. A 2-year-old can understand this! Obedience is:

Right away
All the way
With a happy heart

If any one of the three elements is missing, you don't have obedience. I'm glad we learned this early, because we have used it a lot! That third point is where we spend most of our training energy.

Parenting Tip: "Do You Understand?"

2008-05-08T14:51:00.005-05:00

When our oldest children were very young, we went through a parenting book called Growing Kids God's Way (GKGW) by Gary and Anne Marie Ezzo of Growing Families International. They published a similar book for the secular market called Child Wise.

One of the suggestions given in GKGW was to teach your children to respond, "Yes, Mommy" or "Yes, Daddy" whenever you give them an instruction. While we liked that concept, it was just a little more than we cared to enforce. We noticed that most of the time we were giving simple instructions when the children were directly at hand. It was easy enough to be certain the child complied or to make an immediate correction when necessary.

However, there are definitely moments when we would like a response. Perhaps we are in another room, and we want to be certain the child heard the instruction. Or, maybe we are aware that the child's mind is elsewhere, and the instruction could be quickly forgotten. Sometimes we use this technique to place a special emphasis (e.g. "Do not ever chase your ball into the street. Do you understand?").

Requiring and receiving a verbal response from the child is beneficial in several ways. First, it helps him or her to focus on completing the task. Second, when responding in this manner, the child is affirming in his or her own mind the intention to obey. Third, the parent can be certain the message was heard and understood. Fourth, the child is showing honor to the parent and acknowledging the parent's authority by giving this polite, positive response.

When we are within line of sight, eye contact accompanies the parent's question and child's response. This helps to engage the child's mind and prevent an unthinking, rote response. Do not let them ever ignore your "Do you understand?" question. Not even once. Even as they have grown older, we have not allowed them to shorten it to "Yes." They still respond with "Yes, Mom" or "Yes, Dad".

We began teaching our children to respond in this way while they were very young--certainly prior to 18 months of age. They were not even speaking fluently, but it was being trained into their hearts and minds. At this age, the conversation goes like this: "Ross, pick up your ball and bring it to Mommy." Pause. "You say, 'Yes, Mommy.'" He responds with a beautiful baby talk "Yes, Mama." (And then you may have to repeat the instruction about the ball). This should quickly become a habit, probably by the time they are speaking fluently. They may go through stage here and there where they drop the response, and you will need to give them a reminder.

This simple technique has been a great parenting tool for us, and probably the thing that most stuck with us from GKGW. If you are interested in GKGW, you can take a look at it on the Growing Families International website or at Amazon.com:

Storage for Settlers of Catan

2008-05-03T14:07:00.012-05:00


Settlers and Cities & Knights	Seafarers

I've mentioned that our favorite family game is The Settlers of Catan. We have the main Settlers gamealong with the 5-6 player extension. We have found that our favorite way to play is with the Cities & Knights expansion and the 5-6 player extension for Cities & Knights. In addition, we also own (but use less frequently) the Seafarers expansionand the 5-6 player Seafarers extension.

Consequently, we have many little game pieces to keep track of. We found that setting up and putting away the games was rather time consuming. We'd rather spend our time playing the game than gathering and organizing parts. So we come up with a storage solution. We have two Sterilite large clip boxes from Target. They measure 3.25"X11"X14". Inside the boxes we placed small, round, plastic containers each 2" in diameter and 2.75" tall. The round containers also came from Target (in the craft section). Unfortunately, Target does not have the clip boxes or round, plastic containers on its website. You can see them in the pictures, though.

In the first box, we put all the pieces for Settlers and Cities & Knights together since that is how we play most often. Inside are nine round, plastic containers. One container holds the number chits for a 2-4 person game, another holds the number chits for a 5-6 person game, a third holds the dice, robber, merchant, etc. The remaining six containers hold each color's pieces. Filling the remainder of the box are the land and water hexes, water frame, calendars, and cards. The instruction book lays on top.

The second box has all the pieces from Seafarers. Similarly, the second box holds eight containers with Seafarers pieces. Here are some more pictures:

The solution, of course, is only as perfect as the operator. In our case, the kids frequently play without us. So the setup and clean up are less than perfect. But, they do pretty well getting things in the right places.

I have some ideas to improve the system. Ideally, the clip boxes would be just a half inch taller. I'd like to find some sort of round container that would just match the diameter of the number chits. That way, we could put them away in order, and they would come out already in order when setting up the next game. Finally, I'd love to find a perfect size outer box that would hold both of the clip boxes inside of it.

Interested in Settlers of Catan, Cities & Knights, and Seafarers of Catan? They are available at Amazon.com. Here are the 2-4 player sets:

Here are the 5-6 player extension sets:

Video Review: Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion

2008-05-02T15:15:00.003-05:00

Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion
From The History Channel

Several months ago, we joined NetFlix with the intention of adding more educational videos to our homeschool curriculum. I soon learned that not all documentaries are completely family friendly, even if they are educational. This one, I am happy to report, was very family friendly. I noted two instances of the "D-Word" used in a historic quotation.

Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion is a two-DVD set. The first DVD covers Roosevelt's life up to the beginning of his presidency. The second DVD covers his presidency to his death. Richard Dreyfuss voices Teddy Roosevelt. At first, I thought Dreyfuss was an odd choice because I imagined Teddy Roosevelt with a loud, booming voice. At some point in the film, mention is made of Roosevelt's high-pitched voice. Richard Dreyfuss gave an excellent performance.

Our kids were very interested in the first disc, but the younger ones (ages 7 and 4) lost interest with the second disc's discussion of Roosevelt's presidential policies. We all learned a great deal about Teddy Roosevelt as well as the nation and world that he helped shape.

Book Review: Winged Watchman

2008-05-01T15:37:00.001-05:00

The Winged Watchman
by Hilda Van Stockum

Set in the mid-1940's, this is a story about a family living in Holland just prior to the end of World War II. We learn of the hardships faced by the people of Holland as well as their bravery in the face of Nazi occupation.

The story is told mostly from the point of view of Joris, a 10-year-old boy. Joris's father tends one of Holland's windmill's, the Watchman, and that is where the family makes their home. His family has little, yet shares what they have to help others. Ultimately, they become involved in the resistance movement at great personal risk.

The Nazi's are the villains, of course, but there are also traitorous Dutch who work with the occupiers to suppress their own people. There is always the threat of running afoul of someone wanting to curry favor with the Nazi's.

There are many disturbing scenes. Neighbors are found harboring fugitive English pilots, and they are carted off by soldiers. A Jewish family in the village is taken, with only the mother and baby daughter ultimately surviving. People from the cities are literally starving, and children wander the countryside in search of food. However, these ideas are presented gently and are mixed with the pleasantries of Joris's family life. We are shown repeatedly how faith sustains the family and guides their interactions with others.

Product Review: Coleman Thermoelectric Cooler

2008-04-30T13:45:00.002-05:00

Coleman 40-Quart Thermoelectric Cooler - PowerChill

This weekend, we will be headed out for our first camping trip of the season. It got me thinking about my favorite camping item. The Coleman Thermoelectric Cooler has been wonderful for our family. It works great for both camping and road trips! It has paid for itself many times over because we have lunch from the cooler instead of a restaurant when we're on the road.

This cooler fits just right in the back end of our Dodge Grand Caravan and plugs into the van's nearby power supply. We keep it horizontal (with the door opening on top), but it also works vertically, if you want it that way. At the campground, we leave generally leave it in the van but plug it into the campground electricity. When we're staying in a motel, it's easy enough to carry into our room to plug in.

You will want to make sure you get the optional power supply so that you can plug it into a standard electric outlet. It comes with an removable/adjustable shelf, but I always leave that at home. This cooler doesn't hold as much as our old Coleman Green Steel Belted Cooler, but we can pack just as much (maybe more!) since we don't need to have room for ice. And, there is no more yucky water in the bottom of the cooler making our lunch meat and Hershey bars soggy!

The cooler keeps the food about 40 degrees below the ambient temperature. So, most of the time that is plenty cool enough. Once in awhile, if we are camping when it is really hot (above 90 degrees), I take a little extra care with the cooler. By mid-morning, when it is really starting to get warm, we put the cooler in the shade and cover it with a couple of towels. Also, if I know it is going to be a hot weekend, I start out with some things frozen (like hot dogs, scrambled eggs, water bottles). They help keep the cooler chilled, and they're thawed by the time we're ready for them.

It is so great not to have to worry about keeping enough ice and dealing with the water mess. We've owned our cooler for more than 5 years, and it is still going strong.

Book Review: The Prince of Darkness

2008-04-20T13:39:00.007-05:00

The Prince of Darkness
By Robert D. Novak

Just last night I finished reading through the 600+ pages of the memoir of Robert D. Novak. Novak is a fellow Illinoisan and U of I alum. He has been one of my favorite political writers. If you are a political junkie, and you have an avid interest in the politics of the last half century, this is a great read. If you have only a mild interest in politics, this book will bore you to tears.

Robert Novak has been a figure on the national stage since the early 1960's. He has had contact with all the presidents and other national political figures since that time. Although he is known as a solid conservative today, he hasn't always been a conservative. This book chronicles in parallel his journey to conservatism along with the nation's political realignment.

My political memory begins with the Republican National Convention in 1976. At the height of the Iran hostage crisis in 1979, I was in sixth grade and hooked on politics. My sixth grade teacher required each student to have a subscription to U.S. News and World Report, and I actually read mine. It was fascinating for me to get Novak's behind-the-scenes look at the political world I have been watching from the outside for the past 30 years.

Being in his late seventies, Robert Novak's political memory goes back much further than my own. He personally knew John and Robert Kennedy. His wedding reception was hosted by Lyndon B. Johnson. Talk about having an inside track. I found it strange that he gave only passing mention to the assassination of JFK. With all that has been written and speculated about that event, I expected him to given his take on the matter. It made me wonder whether he knows some really interesting details that are not public knowledge.

The politics of the 1950's and 1960's have always been somewhat murky to me. It is hard for me to imagine a Republican party that was not conservative. I learned a lot of the history of that time period.

Novak is a newspaperman and a television pundit. He gave a great many details about newspaper and television colleagues over the years. A major theme of the book was the political realignment of the country, culminating in the historic 1994 elections. However, I noted another strange omission from his memoirs. There was not one word about talk radio in general or Rush Limbaugh in particular.

He was strikingly honest about his personal life. He lived in a world so different from my own. He notes his regret at being absent a great deal while his children were growing up. He entertained sources on a lavish expense account, consumed vast amounts of alcohol, and traveled all over the world for weeks at a time.

If you are interested in more of what Novak writes, here are some links:
Novak's newspaper columns (the Sunday column is my favorite with its political tidbits)
The Evans-Novak Political Report (weekly)

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About The CommonSenseMom's Homemade Ice Cream

2008-04-03T15:45:00.004-05:00

I've been making homemade ice cream for the past several months. In this post, I've put together what I've learned. You can see my current best recipe, some flavor variations, my upcoming recipe tweaks, etc.

The CommonSenseMom's Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

¼ c. cold water
2 T. unflavored gelatin
3 c. whole milk
1 c. sugar
¼ t. salt
1 t. vanilla
1 c. heavy whipping cream

Put cold water in small shallow bowl. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water and let sit. Put the milk in a glass mixing bowl. Microwave until it reaches 160 degrees. In my microwave, it takes 7 minutes. Add the softened gelatin, sugar, and salt to the hot milk and whisk for 2 full minutes. Add vanilla and cream to milk mixture. Whisk until thoroughly combined.

Chill mixture in refrigerator until cold. Put mix into ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions.

Makes about 13 half cup servings. Each serving has approximately 158 calories, 72 calories from fat, 8 g. total fat, 5.4 g. saturated fat, 33 g. cholesterol, 20 g. carbohydrate, and 20 g. sugars. This is relatively close to the nutritional data for Edy's Grand Vanilla Ice Cream.

Variations

Chocolate: Add 2/3 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips to milk before heating. Slightly increase heating time.

Chocolate/Fudge Swirl: When putting the ice cream into its storage container, alternate layers of ice cream and fudge topping.

Chocolate Chip: Add 2/3 c. miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips during the last minute of churning. After removing the dasher, mix with your spoon a little to make sure the chips are evenly distributed.

Cookies & Cream: Crush about 20 Oreos. Add during the last minute of churning. After removing the dasher, mix with your spoon a little to make sure the cookies are evenly distributed.

Mint Chocolate Chip: Replace vanilla extract with ½ t. vanilla extract, ½ t. peppermint extract, and 3 drops green food coloring. Add 2/3 c. miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips during the last minute of churning. After removing the dasher, mix with your spoon a little to make sure the chips are evenly distributed. Note that you want peppermint extract, not mint extract.

Chocolate Marshmallow: Use the chocolate variation above. When putting the ice cream into its storage container, alternate layers of chocolate ice cream and marshmallow topping.

Strawberry: Thaw 8 ounces of frozen, sweetened strawberries. (They come in a 16-ounce tub in the freezer section of WalMart). Mash the strawberries with their juice. Add to the ice cream during the last 2 minutes of churning. After removing the dasher, mix with your spoon a little to make sure the strawberries are evenly distributed.

Cinnamon: Add 1 t. cinnamon along with the vanilla. Serve over apple pie.

Custard: Beat 2 eggs well. Add the eggs to the milk prior to heating. Whisk together thoroughly. You may have to slightly increase the heating time. Increase sugar by 2 T.

Upcoming tests

I will try replacing ¼ c. of the sugar with ¼ c. honey. I want to see if that will keep it from freezing so hard.

I am going to experiment with adding non-fat dry milk powder to increase the creaminess.

Some of my related posts

Homemade Ice Cream is Too Hard
Making Ice Cream: Some Useful Tools
Product Review: KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment
A Good Basic Ice Cream Recipe to Start With

A Good, Basic Ice Cream Recipe to Start With

2008-04-03T14:53:00.006-05:00

This is the basic vanilla ice cream recipe that I started out with. Excellent.

Basic Vanilla Ice Cream

1 cup whole milk, well chilled
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups heavy cream, well chilled
1 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract, to taste

In a medium bowl, use a hand mixer or a whisk to combine the milk and granulated sugar until the sugar is dissolved, about 1 - 2 minutes on low speed. Stir in heavy cream and add vanilla to taste. Turn machine on, pour mixture into freezer bowl through ingredient spout and let mix until thickened, about 25-30 minutes. Enjoy!

Here are some of my related posts:

Homemade Ice Cream is Too Hard
Making Ice Cream: Some Useful Tools
Product Review: KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About The CommonSenseMom's Homemade Ice Cream

Classic Blogger Expandable Post Summaries

2008-04-02T19:05:00.003-05:00

Please bear with me while I get a little bit geeky on you here. I've spent my afternoon trying to figure out how to create a simple expandable post summary in non-Beta (old, classic) Blogger. It's easy enough to do if you don't mind having "Read more..." at the bottom of every post whether you need it or not. The tricky part is preventing "Read more..." when you just want to make a short post.

Finally I have met with success!!!

A full explanation of this simple Blogger hack is found here. It is very well written and documented. The solution worked for me the first time. Nicely done.

Making Ice Cream: Some Useful Tools

2008-03-31T12:47:00.010-05:00

After reviewing my KitchenAid KICA0WH Ice Cream Maker AttachmentI decided to let you know of some useful tools I have discovered in my past several months of regular ice cream making.

You'll need a container in which to store your completed product. I found some 8-cup plastic containers at WalMart that do the trick. The great part is that they are rectangular shaped rather than round, so they fit nicely in the freezer. Eight-Cup GladWare Deep Dish Containers with Lidswould work, too.

A bowl to combine your ingredients will be necessary. I have a Pampered Chef Batter Bowl that works just perfectly for this job. It is made of glass, so it can go into the microwave to heat the milk. It has a lid for covering the ice cream mix while it is cooling in the fridge. And, best of all, it has a spout which makes for easier pouring into the ice cream maker. Being dishwasher safe makes it perfect.

The last little gem I will mention is unflavored gelatin. It's not exactly a tool, I guess. But this is a great ingredient to add smoothness to your ice cream. The gelatin binds with water to help reduce the amount of ice crystals in your frozen ice cream. After I decided that the little packets at the grocery store were too expensive, I went on a quest to find bulk unflavored gelatin for a reasonable price. The best I have found is at Amazon.com. They carry two varieties: Kosher gelatin (made from beef) and regular gelatin (made from pork). You can click on one of the boxes below to order!

Here are some of my related posts:

Homemade Ice Cream is Too Hard
A Good, Basic Ice Cream Recipe to Start With
Product Review: KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About The CommonSenseMom's Homemade Ice Cream

Product Review: KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment - KICA0WH

2008-03-30T15:03:00.005-05:00

As long promised to you, I offer my review of the KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment.

While vacationing in Seattle last summer, I was a guest at a dinner party where the hostess served homemade cinnamon ice cream on top of apple pie. Wow, what a knockout combination! When I found out that she had some new-fangled Cuisinart ice cream maker that didn't require salt or ice, I had to know more about it.

During my research, I found that KitchenAid has an ice cream maker attachment for their stand mixers that works on the same principle. The key to this new generation of ice cream makers is the insulated bowl. You put the bowl in the deep freeze overnight or longer. This cold, insulated container takes the place of the salt and ice in the ice cream freezing process. I already own a KitchenAid stand mixer, and I wished to avoid taking up more counter and cabinet space with gadgets, if possible. So, I eventually decided on the KitchenAid attachment instead of the Cuisinart ice cream maker.

I've continually heard good things about the Cuisinart, and I include a link here for your convenience. But, I cannot offer anything but hearsay on the Cuisinart.

Since Christmas, I have been the owner of the KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment. I told my husband and kids that I would have to practice quite a bit to get the recipe just right. They were going to have to be good soldiers and eat all of the practice batches. They didn't disappoint me.

I started out with Rebecca's cinnamon ice cream recipe without the cinnamon. It had been so good in Seattle that I was pretty sure I couldn't go wrong. The first batch was a hit!

It was so rich and creamy. I just knew that we couldn't consume something like that too frequently. So, I began to tweak my recipe. To be honest, I am still tweaking, but we haven't had a bad batch yet. I'll be posting some of my recipes and hints here in the future.

It is important to understand that homemade ice cream is different than store bought ice cream. At the end of churning, it will be the consistency of soft-serve ice cream or maybe an extremely thick milkshake. You can eat it soft right away, or you put it in the freezer to "ripen" and harden. After being fully frozen, it is very hard. See my tip about softening prior to serving.

The bottom line is that I have been very, very pleased with the performance of the KitchenAid attachment. My current recipe makes almost a half gallon of ice cream, and that is just about all the bowl can reasonably hold. I wish it were bigger, so I could make a full gallon at a time (we have a big family). All of the pieces, except for the bowl itself, are dishwasher safe. The bowl washes up easily in warm soapy water. Usually I have to wipe some ice cream off the post of the mixer also. But, overall, cleanup is pretty simple.

Highly recommended!

Here are some of my related posts:

Homemade Ice Cream is Too Hard
Making Ice Cream: Some Useful Tools
A Good, Basic Ice Cream Recipe to Start With
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About The CommonSenseMom's Homemade Ice Cream

More About Cornbread

2008-03-19T15:06:00.003-05:00

Maybe you've tried my cornbread recipe. If so, you've probably noticed that fresh cornbread is wonderful, but it gets dried out much more quickly than normal bread. Here's our solution: freeze immediately!

As soon as the cornbread is cool, or maybe even still slightly warm, remove meal sized portions from the pan. Place in plastic bags and freeze.

Just take them out of the freezer again when you need them. Give them about an hour to thaw on the counter. If still slightly cold, put in the microwave for a few seconds to warm. Almost as good as fresh-baked.

The CommonSenseMom's Best Cornbread Recipe

2008-03-19T14:58:00.004-05:00

Alissa and I have tweaked the 4-H cornbread recipe to come up with a real winner!

The CommonSenseMom's Best Cornbread Recipe

1 c. all purpose flour
¾ c. cornmeal
½ t. salt
2 t. baking powder
½ cup sugar (scant)
1 egg
1 c. skim milk
¼ cup canola oil

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Grease the pan, including the sides. Mix together the flour, cornmeal, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Add egg, milk, and oil. Stir just until mixed. Spread into 8 X 8 or 9 X 9 inch pan (we like to use a square glass baking dish). Bake about 25 minutes. The cornbread is done when the top is a light, golden color, begins to pull away from the edge of the pan, and springs back when lightly touched.

Sometimes we double this recipe and bake in a 13 X 9 inch pan.

Chicken Alfredo Bake Recipe

2008-03-19T14:47:00.005-05:00

This serves a crowd--twice! Cut the recipe in half if you don't want an extra casserole for the freezer.

Chicken Alfredo Bake

3 lbs. cooked chicken, chopped
1 lb. package Penne pasta, cooked
13.5 oz. package whole wheat Penne pasta, cooked
2 c. shredded Italian cheese
½ c. Parmesan cheese
8 T. butter
6 T. flour
6 chicken bouillon cubes
1 t. dried basil leaves
2 t. garlic powder
¼ t. pepper
8 c. milk
½ package frozen spinach (optional)

Melt butter in large sauce pan. Stir in flour, basil, garlic powder, and pepper. Gradually stir in milk and add bouillon cubes. Cook and stir until slightly thickened. Add chicken, spinach, and Parmesan cheese. Grease two 3-quart casserole dishes. In each dish, layer pasta, chicken/sauce mixture, and Italian cheese. Repeat layers. Cover one dish securely with plastic wrap and foil. Freeze. Bake the other one at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Each casserole serves 8-10.

Homemade Ice Cream is Too Hard

2008-03-18T20:51:00.004-05:00

I got an ice cream maker for Christmas. Eventually, I'll post a review and my perfected (!) recipe.

But, for now, I'll simply comment on the hardness of homemade ice cream. It is unfortunate that we get so used to the goo they put in commercial ice cream. But, alas, we do like goo, don't we? Anyway, I've fiddled around with my recipe quite a bit, and the ice cream is still hard as a brick after ripening in the freezer.

So, you can let it sit on the counter for 15 minutes before eating. But, my personal favorite method is to take it out of the freezer and put it into the fridge for 2 hours prior to serving. Yes, it takes some advance planning, but the consistency is just right!

Here are some of my related posts:

A Good, Basic Ice Cream Recipe to Start With
Making Ice Cream: Some Useful Tools
Product Review: KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About The CommonSenseMom's Homemade Ice Cream

The CommonSenseMom's Frozen Fruit Cups Recipe

2008-03-18T18:54:00.003-05:00

This frozen fruit slushie salad is one of my kids' favorites. It's easy to make...just make sure you've got room in your freezer. Also, it's a great make-ahead dish for entertaining. I often double the recipe and serve at parties.

1 large can fruit cocktail (I use the lower sugar version)
1 can frozen strawberries (sweetened--they come in a tub at WalMart)
1 can 7-Up (you can use diet if you like)
2 sliced bananas
1 small can orange juice concentrate (or 1/2 of a large can - I use country style)
1 small can mandarin oranges

Combine all ingredients together in large bowl. Ladel into individual cups (I use Solo 9-ounce clear plastic disposable cups). Freeze. Remove from freezer to begin thawing 2 hours prior to serving. You want them to still have ice crystals in them--like the consistency of a slushie. Makes 12 servings.

In Praise of Baby Wipes

2008-03-13T08:05:00.002-05:00

When my kids were in diapers, I bought baby wipes by the case at Wal-Mart. I haven't had anyone in diapers for more than 2 years, but I still occasionally buy a case of baby wipes. They are wonderful for so many things!

My two oldest girls use a baby wipe every morning to wipe down the bathroom sinks. Baby wipes do a fine job, and I don't worry about the girls using strong chemicals. Baby wipes are also perfect for spot cleaning the kitchen floor. When you have a box easily accessible, it's amazing how many times you find yourself reaching for one to wipe off this or that.

Book Review: Family Driven Faith

2008-03-11T15:29:00.008-05:00

Family Driven Faith
By Voddie Baucham

I loved this book. I wish every parent or potential parent would read it. Dr. Baucham is passionate about teaching parents to disciple their own children rather than turning them over to a youth pastor. This book is a thorough exposition of that topic.

I've had the privilege of watching Dr. Baucham speak on video twice, and I would love to see him in person. He also has a website and blog where you can read many of his thoughts.

The CommonSenseMom's Recipe for Egg-Free, Dairy-Free Rolls

2008-03-10T15:57:00.002-05:00

I generally use an egg and dry milk powder in my bread products, but I recently made these for a family with egg and dairy allergy issues. This recipe can be made into rolls or a loaf of bread.

7/8 c. warm water
2 T. olive oil
2 1/2 T. honey
1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 c. bread flour
1 1/2 c. King Arthur white whole wheat flour
1 t. vital wheat gluten
1 1/2 t. yeast

You may need to add a little flour or water to get the dough just right. I let the bread machine mix and knead it and do the first rise. Then, I took it out and shaped it into 16 rolls. Cover with greased plastic wrap, let rise for about an hour. Bake at 350 for 21 minutes.

Read-Aloud Story Time in the Car or Van

2008-03-10T15:40:00.003-05:00

In a recent post, I mentioned that we have pieced together a microphone system that allows me to read books aloud in the van so that everyone can hear me through the vehicle's speakers. Before having this, I would sit in the front passenger seat and twist myself to be heard by the kids in the middle and back rows. In addition to turning my torso, I had to speak loudly. The driver (Paul) felt like I was shouting right in his ear. My back ached, and my voice quickly grew tired. Now, I can sit comfortably in my seat, speak in a normal voice, and be clearly heard throughout the van.

The first piece of this puzzle is the FM transmitter that I highlighted here. There are two more pieces necessary to make it all work.

This is the speaker/amplifier from Radio Shack.

And this is the clip-on microphone from Radio Shack.

This is what worked for us. There could be better and/or cheaper solutions. One thing to note on the microphone is that it needs to be a mono (phonic???) as opposed to a stereo (phonic???) microphone because the speaker/amp requires that to work. We had to figure that out when getting our setup working.

Now, Here's a Handy Little Gadget

2008-03-07T15:37:00.005-06:00

Paul received this Sony Car FM Stereo Transmitter as a Christmas gift from his employer, and it has been a great addition to our vehicular travels.

Here's how it works. You take the audio output from something like a CD player, MP 3 player, or DVD player and connect it to this gizmo. This device then transmits the audio signal on a short-range FM signal of your choosing. Then you tune your car radio to the corresponding FM frequency, and presto!, the audio is heard through your vehicle's sound system.

We first used it with our portable DVD player to broadcast the sound throughout the van. Next, I got the bright idea that it could save my voice when reading aloud in the van. Paul did a little work with Radio Shack and came up with a clever system for doing just that. More details on that to follow.

Chick Flick! Pride and Prejudice - Part 4

2008-03-06T14:28:00.004-06:00

Here, as promised, is my final review of Pride and Prejudice videos.

The BBC produced this version, starring Janet Davies and Desmond Adams, in 1980. The five episode miniseries is, well, rather British. If you like British TV shows on PBS, you'll like this. For some reason, I'm find myself unable to appreciate the British-ness of the production. I know, I know. Jane Austen was British! My husband let me know that this one was downright painful to watch.

To be honest, it's been a number of weeks since I viewed this version, and I am finding it forgettable. I much preferred reading the book.

Here are my other Pride & Prejudice reviews:
The long A&E version with Colin Firth
The recent 2-hour-ish version with Keira Knightly
The 1940's version

Or, you could always read the book:

Settlers of Catan: Cities and Knights Conundrum

2008-03-01T15:59:00.004-06:00

This is a guest post from the CommonSenseDad. If you're familiar with the game, let us know what you think.

1. Red has established a long road that separates Blue's two settlements. Blue is highly irate about this situation and intends to do something about it.

2. Blue has successfully built a settlement in a legal position that cuts Red's road. Red is unhappy that he looses his nice long contiguous road, but Blue isn't done yet.

3. Blue now plays a Diplomat card and removes one of Red's roads because Blue believes that since Red's road is cut, the road is now open and the last segment can be removed. (MUUUWAHHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!) (You might notice that I seem to be taking Blue's side in this game. This was a real game situation, and I was playing Blue. Ok, confession time is done.)

4. Blue now builds two road segments connecting his settlements and establishing a nice long road, while also cutting off Red's settlements. (This part doesn't really have any bearing on the question of playing the Diplomat card in step 3, I just wanted to point out how brilliant this play really is. You see it, right? Brilliance? Shield your eyes.)

Ok, so the question boils down to...Once Blue has placed his settlement and cut off Red's long road, are the two sides of Red's road now considered open meaning that the Diplomat card can be played to remove the last segment in either one? The rules state that for a road to be closed, they have to have something item of the same color (settlement, city, or knight) at the end of that road.

Chick Flick! Pride and Prejudice - Part 3

2008-02-29T14:50:00.005-06:00

Before starting on my grand quest to view every film version of Pride and Prejudice ever made, I had no idea the first was done in 1940. How wonderful is NetFlix! I had a copy in my mailbox just in time for Carole's visit.

Let's start with the end. It ridiculously mangles the novel's plot. It's that simple. Now, let's move on to the costumes. On first glance, I thought to myself, "Come on, couldn't they be just a little more authentic?" Then I learned that the costumes were left over from the production of Gone with the Wind. Given the Great Depression and World War II, as well as my general admiration of thriftiness, I'll give the costumes a pass.

If you are a rabid partisan of any of the more recent adaptations, this one will not satisfy. Mr. Collins was the only character to rival the more modern portrayals. On the other hand if you are looking for a good sleepy-Sunday-afternoon-on-the-couch-under-a-blanket kind of movie this could be it. I did enjoy it--not as a faithful "Pride and Prejudice" effort--but just for what it is.

Here are my other Pride & Prejudice reviews:
The long A&E version with Colin Firth
The recent 2-hour-ish version with Keira Knightly
The 1980's BBC miniseries

Or, you could always read the book: