'Kiss-Feeding': Things That Make Me Go Hmm.


Alicia Silverstone is definitely what anyone would consider a hands-on devoted mommy. And then some. Ever since the Clueless actress posted a video of herself 'kiss-feeding' her 11-month-old son, Bear, moms everywhere have been discussing, sharing and questioning, this bizarre unusual method of feeding your baby.

Hopping Cute Bunny Finger Puppets!


I came across these amazingly cute bunny finger puppets at the equally amazing Purl Bee, and almost tripped over myself in my haste to get back here and share about them!

Want to learn how to make them?

Wait.[pleaseee.]

Before you head over there to get the step by step instructions (said to be very easy - even for a non-crafty person like me,) take a peek at these-




Handmade felt Easter Egg Hunt Bags!

If you love to sex, knit, crochet or do crafts of just about any kind, and you have not visited this site yet, you will owe me big time, want to thank me profusely for pointing you in the right direction, be so happy when you check it out!

Have fun!


Cool Easter Crafts For Kids

Easter Crafts For Kids



Easy and fun Easter craft ideas for kids (but you know that you are gonna want to get in on the fun too!)

Hand-Print Easter Craft


kids easy Easter project


LaVonne has shared this fun Preschool Easter craft on her blog - isn't it cute? You can find the original project - which uses foam- posted at artists helping kids.



Paper plate Bunny Craft



Paper Plate Easter Bunny



Preschoolers will love making this cute bunny craft using paper plates, and construction paper!

Find Complete Directions at  KidCrafts.com.



Easter Bunny Candy Envelopes






Cute Easter bunny envelopes make perfect treat bags for all those candies the Easter bunny brings. 

You can get the directions at Martha Stewart.




Related: How To Make Safe Homemade Easter Egg Dyes 


Free Easter Egg Hunt Print-Out



free Easter Printables


Get out the crayons and let the kids enjoy coloring this free Easter downloadable from the amazing Julissa MoraThis printable Easter Egg Hunt should keep your little ones busy long enough for you to enjoy a cup of coffee!



Jellybean Bracelet


What kid wouldn't love making these bracelets? For that matter, what adult wouldn't either?? This cool Easter craft for kids was shared by Becky at Made For Kids.

Spartan Race: Challenge Yourself to Get Fit

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Spartan Race. All opinions are 100% mine.
SR_logo_banner.png
Have you heard about Spartan Race yet? This revolutionary new way to get fit challenges you to race in worldwide obstacle courses - you will find yourself running through mud and trails and having the challenge of your life!

Totino's "Learn a Ton When School is Fun' Twitter Party!

Totino’s launched the “Learn a Ton When School is Fun” sweepstakes, determined to bring more fun into the school environment for America’s kids as an essential part of the learning process. By teaming up with Box Tops for Education for the sweepstakes, Totino’s has given away a total of one million Bonus Box Tops to four lucky schools.

On Wednesday March 28th, Totino’s is celebrating with a Twitter Party to honor the “Learn a Ton When School is Fun” sweepstakes winners and all those who are dedicated to making school more fun. Box Tops for Education and Gerald Richards, CEO of 826 National – a nationally-recognized nonprofit whose model encourages collaboration and creativity in the learning process – will lead the party chat from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. EST.

·         Where: Twitter -- simply follow @BTFE and @826National
·         When: March 28th from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. EST
·         How:  Follow the conversation by using the hash tag #TotinosLearnaTon and join us to tweet about your favorite ways to make school and snack time more fun
·         Bonus! Early party goers to use #TotinosLearnATon will receive 25 Box Tops and a VIP coupon for Totino’s product! More details will be announced at the start of the party

See you there!

What Not To Ask a Pregnant Woman


I remember everything about all of my pregnancies, from seeing those wonderful lines confirming what I had already been suspecting to the many endless nights of no sleep because I had morning sickness 24/7. We all have the warm fuzzy pregnancy memories, and the not-so-fuzzy memories. But what I really could have done without were those questions. You know what I am talking about - the annoying, stupid, and sometimes really personal questions that people would ask.

I would get asked things like, "Oh, another boy? I bet you really wanted a girl this time. Sorry." Seriously? How about saying 'How Wonderful! Boys are amazing!' hmm?

And then there would be the dreaded weight questions. Please. That was a magic number discussed only by me and my doctor.

And the worst of all: "Did you really plan/want to get pregnant again?" That question, especially asked by virtual strangers who somehow confused my pregnant belly as an invitation to discuss my personal life, would make me feel so many things. But most of all, I would feel upset with myself for not being more firm and simply not engaging with strangers when they felt the need to ask questions about my pregnancy.

Is it just me, or is it hard to be rude back to people who are kind of being rude themselves?

I loved being pregnant, and when all is said and done, and that warm sweet little human being was snuggled in my arms, nothing else mattered. Not the morning sickness, not the weight gain, nor the stretch marks, and especially not the annoying questions.

None of it.

But if I had to do it over again, I wish I could have had some sort of a board I could have held up when strangers approached, with something along the lines of -

"Please don't ask me (insert questions you do not want to be asked here) because I will not be answering, thank-you!" And no, you may not rub my belly.


What questions do you wish people would not have asked you when you were pregnant?




Baby's Got Style!

[Warning: Reading this post may cause ovary tugging.]

First, let me say I am not having any more babies. Second, let me say that I still love to check out the newest baby goodies anyway. And third, you might just want to thank-me for being all things baby -obsessed when you see what I found today as I 'window' shopped the net:

Six Bunnies has come out with some of the cutest infant onesies I have seen lately. (Serious cuteness ahead!)





Check them out at Taffeta Punk.com ($19.95)

3 Easy Bird Feeders To Make With Your Kids

3 DIY Bird Feeders

Is it spring break yet in your neck of the woods? It is drawing near for my kids, so I am perusing the web in search of fun spring break ideas for us to do together. We have a great backyard and a couple of trees, so I thought of making simple bird feeders with the kids.

I wanted to find easy creative feeders to make, using materials and items around our house. There were so many suggestions out there, but I finally picked the three I thought were perfect for us to try!

Cookie Cutter Bird Feeder

  • Get a piece of bread. Hard, stale bread is perfect!
  • Find a cookie cutter that fits on as much of the bread as possible.
  • Use the cookie cutter and cut a shape out of the slice of bread.
  • Use a straw to poke a small hole in the center of the bread shape.
  • String the yarn through the hole and tie a loop.
  • Hang it outside in a tree! (Hang your bird feeder at the end of a smaller branch so squirrels don't get it.)
[Family Crafts]


Recycled Milk Carton Bird Feeder 

  • Wash and dry the milk carton.
  • Staple top shut. [parent job!]
  •  Make a hole that is about 21/2 " wide or cut a square hole -make hole on both sides.[Again, parents!]
  • Make a tiny hole, on both sides, to slide some sort of perch into. (Try a pencil, dowel, or maybe a Popsicle stick. Just something the birdies will enjoy sitting on for a few minutes!)
  • Decorate!!
  • Fill with bird seed and hang on the end of tree branch with string or wire. 
[ZiggityZoom]


DIY Mini Bird Feeders 


I think this is especially fun for the younger set as it is a messy and mushy - perfect for little hands!

Things needed: Birdseed, peanut butter (or honey in case of allergies), silicone ice cube molds, ribbon
  • Mix birdseed and peanut butter (or honey) until texture of play-doh. 
  • Step 2: Spoon enough of the birdseed mixture into the mold to cover the bottom
  • Step 3: Place the end of a piece of ribbon in the center of each mold
  • Step 4: Cover completely with birdseed mixture
  • Step 5: Freeze overnight
  •  Pop bird feeders out of molds and hang outside (preferably on a cooler day — if it’s too hot out, the peanut butter may melt!)


And here are a couple more cute ideas for homemade bird feeders you can check out!

BirdFeeding Tray

Reuse Your Empty Coffee Can to Make These Adorable 'Bee' Bird Feeders!

Spring Break Idea For the Kiddos (And You!): Make Your Own Peanut Butter

So while this may not be an amazing, unique, or even a mildly mind-boggling spring break idea, it can still be a fun family activity that will keep your little ones busy for at least part of a day.

I have never ever tried making my own peanut butter from scratch, but I am now intrigued by the idea after coming across this recipe at Wisebread.

It involves peanuts.



And blending (actually, you really need a food processor for this recipe.)



A touch of salt (and maybe a drop or two of oil ?)



And will result in this!!


and hopefully lots of happy!




Have you made homemade peanut butter before?

"Dancing with the Stars" Season 14 Starts Tonight! squeee!


I admit it, I love Dancing With the Stars. I tried to resist, really I did, but the show has sucked me in and now I am so happy the new season is starting tonight!

So am I alone in this guilty admission? Are there any other DWTS fans that are excited like me??

Anyone?

LilSugar's 6 Strange But Real Baby Products That Really Work


My baby days are over, but I still love checking out everything babies- from celebs having them to the cutest baby fashions. So of course I was intrigued by this article I came across while browsing about of my favorite sites, LilSugar.

Now I am not sure about all of these baby products that made the list, but I fell in love with this Puj Baby Portable Bathtub - I would have loved having this when my kids were babies. Hands down beats the big old plastic tub thingy I used!



Not so much tugging at my ovaries was The Windi. Sorry. I am sure it does miraculous things and helps those gassy little tummies, but uh, this thing falls into my category of things that make you go hmm.


Swaddling. Is there a mommy out there that does not use swaddling techniques with their new babies?? This 'Woombie' might look, well, a little like a straight jacket like the article's author points out, but she also swears it really works and works well. If another baby were to magically appear in our household, I would give this thing a try. Yes, I would. I think.

Want to see what else made the list? Of course you do! So go check out the article  and see which item(s) tugs at your ovaries!

Forget About Those Annual Pap Smears? Really?


By now most of you have probably heard about the new national guidelines for pap smears, but if not -  ladies you can now skip your annual pap smear and instead just get one every three years.

So says the United States Preventive Services Task Force, who issued the new guidelines last week, replacing recommendations last issued in 2003.

Once. Every. Three. Years. [Are they serious?]

They are.

The reasoning behind this absurd  latest recommendation is that annual pap smears often result in false positives, that lead to sometimes painful biopsies and put women at risk for pregnancy complications in the future, like preterm labor, low-birth-weight infants and infertility.

Plus, cervical cancers are supposedly slow growing cancers, so no worries, ladies.

It is also recommended that women do not start getting pap smears at all until age 21- even if they have become sexually active and thus exposed to HPV, years earlier.

Surprisingly enough, The American Cancer Society agrees with the task force guidelines:

  • Screening with the Pap test alone every 3 years is extremely safe and will decrease the number of false positive results without leading to an increase in cancer or cancer deaths.
  • For women ages 30 years and older, testing with both the HPV test and the Pap test further decreases the risk of cancer and advanced pre-cancers. When both tests are normal, no cervical cancer screening test should be done again for 5 years. (Huh??)
  • Women younger than age 21 do not need to be screened for cervical cancer.
  • Women over the age of 65 who have been regularly screened, and women who have had a hysterectomy (with removal of the cervix) for reasons not related to cervical cancer or pre-cancer, should no longer be screened.
  • Women should talk to their doctors about what screening test to use and how often, and should question their doctors if they think they are being screened too often.
  • Women can and should still see their doctors more often than every 3 or 5 years - just not for a Pap test. Doctor visits should be scheduled for general wellness, with Pap tests and HPV tests given according to guideline.

These new guidelines just do not work for me. Just the thought of what could happen in the course of three years 'down below' scares me and I for one will not be following these new recommendations.

Will you?

Easy To Make St. Patrick's Day Decorations, Crafts and Food Ideas



Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with these gorgeously simple DIY decorating ideas and fun St. Patrick's Day crafts for kids, because crafting is always a perfect family activity no matter what the occasion!

There are also a couple of really cute and easy St. Patty's party appetizers ideas for you as well, just in case you are planning a St. Patty's day party or just to enjoy with the family.


St. Patricks Day Decorating Ideas, St. Patricks Day Toddler crafts to make, Food Ideas for St. Patty Day







St. Patrick's Day Centerpiece Ideas




Two Twenty One




CountryLiving



DIY Shamrock Wreath Ideas For the Front Door.





Atop Serenity Hill






TheDIYPlaybook


 

 St. Patrick's Day Recipes




The 36th Avenue







Mom Foodie






Six Sisters Stuff






St. Patrick's Day Craft Ideas For Toddlers and Bigger Kids




St. Patrick's Day Slime Recipe



Little Bins for Little Hands




Marshmallow Stamping Craft For Little Ones



The Pinterested Parent



Sweet DIY Shamrock T-Shirt Craft For Kids (and Grown-Ups)




CutesyCrafts

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@2023 HappyHealthyFamilies.com. All Rights Reserved.