Tiny tip for busy mommies.

I find one of the hardest things about staying at home is that I have so much to do but I also have a little one needing my attention.  

So I love finding something that provides her entertainment and gives me a few minutes to work uninterrupted.  

I saw this idea on Pinterest or Facebook or in a magazine.  It is not original to me.  I love that it is simple and not hard to set up.  It is something that I can pull out and have ready in just a few minutes.

All that you need is a jar of any size, some tape and some buttons.  I have a little collection of buttons that the kids love to play with.  You can buy packs with buttons of varying shapes and sizes for a few dollars.  I got a pack at Hobby Lobby.

The idea is to give them a slot in which to push their buttons into.  I know it sounds silly but Micah LOVED it!  

I took a mason jar and used duct tape layered in a way that left a tiny "coin slot."  You don't want to make it too big.  You want there to be a bit of resistance when they push the buttons through.  It seems to be satisfying to the toddler mind.

Here Micah is demonstrating.  

(She doesn't look like she is having fun but she is!)

 See here how she is having to push the button into the hole with her thumb.  That is the resistance.

Just a pile of buttons and a jar and you have created yourself a little block of time to get something accomplished!

 This entertained her for about 30 minutes.  She asked for more buttons after she got these put away.  

She is motivated by being a helper so I told her I need her to help me by putting the buttons away.  It was fun to watch her concentrate.

As a bonus this is a great fine motor skill for her to work on!  We even upped the skill level by adding bigger buttons and cutting a bigger hole so she had to decide which hole a specific button could fit into.

And some icing on this cake, I got 2 loads of laundry folded and put away! 

 This baby needed something to entertain her too.  A soup bone did the trick.  She left me alone for about 5 minutes.  Whew.  Border collie puppies have a lot of energy!

Here

This has been going on here...

 

 And this...

 

The kitchen is coming along.  I am so thankful to Matt and his dad Rod for working all week to get everything just right.  They did a fantastic job!  I will post finished pictures when we get knobs on and curtains up.

 

This is also going on here...

 

And this...

 

 

I have 4 babies going to school next week.  It will just be baby girl and me here at home.  So I am soaking up every last minute.  I know they are excited and looking for newness and adventure.  But this mama wants to hold on a little longer.

   

 

At least I have one baby left to squeeze. 





Summer lovin'

The calendar seems to be mistaken.  I refuse to think that June is almost over.  That is silly.  June just started last week!

 

Summer does seem to be moving along at a shocking pace.  We are trying to make the most of it.  Our weather here has been unbelievable!  Cool June days are a welcome thing around here.  The coolness, along with some hail damage has stunted the garden but it is a fair trade.

 

Renovations are slow and steady.  Well, mostly slow but at least we are progressing.  Here are our new floors!

 

 

And here is Father's Day.  Matt got a new wheelbarrow and some other tool-type things.  Oh yes, and candy matched with homemade cards.  Dad's get the best stuff!



 

One day last week we decided to venture across the road to the HUGE playa lake.  It really is beautiful to see from our (GREEN!) yard.  We are not used to standing water in these parts.

 

It was beautiful up close too.

 

Sweet Zaddy and Micah 

 

Grumpy Jolie.  :)

 

Pondering Asher

 

The buddies, Levi and Daddy.

 

The boys spent a ton of time collecting these little shells.  Not sure what kind of thing occupied them before but they had a blast!

 

My crew.

 

The Prairie really is beautiful.

 

If you can find joy in the smallness of it...

 

Or the grandness of it,

you will fall in love.

 

We thought we might loose our dog Fuzz to the playa.  He did not want to leave.  He barked and bit at the water.  He ran all around in it and would not come out!

 

I really can't blame him.  It was pretty perfect.

 

This post is part of a Barn Hop over at New life on a Homestead. 

Texas skies.

Rain is a precious thing here on the Prairie.  So when we get it, we celebrate!  I get really upset if it rains at my house when I am not there.  If I don't get to sit on the porch during a shower, I get grumpy.  RAIN!!  

 

Of course in this part of Texas there is always the chance that a rain shower will turn into a thunderstorm or a tornado.  We don't like the damaging winds or the plant-busting hail we might get.  But we will take the chance if it means we get to smell wet dirt or run our fingers through the streams pouring from the roof.

 

Praise be to God who sustains us and who blesses us in our land!  And praise be to a king who creates such beauty. 

 

(If you have never walked outside after a storm to see the sky on fire, you need to come to Texas.) 

 

 



I come to the garden alone...



 Not sure if you know that hymn (I love the girl who sings on this link) but it is a good one.  It is also oh so true.  Spending time in the garden thinking and talking to God.  It is my favorite time.  I crave more time there. 

 

Sad little sunflowers were the only ones to come up.  But not to be conquered, I planted more seeds this week!

Beans are coming up!

Found a peanut!!  Seriously.  I make it a point to try something new each year.  This year it is 2 peanut plants and 3 strawberry pants.  We shall see.

 My solo time in the garden has to be stolen. . .nap times, the last few minutes of sunlight after the kids are tucked in, and sometimes an early morning.  Like fitting in exercise, if it is important, you find the time. 

 

A line of peppers. 

This looks like a mess right now but before too long they will be tomato trees!!!

Hi happy little 'mater!

But I do have to apologize.  If I have ever said to you, "Oh gardening is easy!  You just throw a plant in the ground and add water."  Just disregard that comment.  I must have made it in January, that month when gardening seems mythical and magical.  Gardening is rewarding but it is not easy. 

 

 

Faithful zucchini.

Teeny cucumbers.

 Take the picture below for example.  What was last week clean barren dirt is this week a matted pile of weed seedlings.  We had great rain and feel blessed.  This, however, was bound to come next.  I am not sure why the weeds have a deeper root and can withstand any torture you might throw at them while my precious garden plants like to wither if you look at them wrong.  There is a profound and spiritual theory in there somewhere.

 

Evil.

This is how they come up, in big clumps of roots.

 As I stoop over the weeds and whack at them with a hoe, I am reminded that not only is hoeing good for the garden, it is also good for my core!  So I guess I can't complain.  Hard work, sunshine, the dirt under my nails and the blisters on my palms are all signs of a healthy, capable body.  For that I sing praise.

 

Such vibrant green lettuce.  So good.

Been snacking on these babies,



with this baby.  He is my mini-me and I love him.

 

The only things that I really would like to rid our gardens of are rabbits, who are from the bowels of Hades and the sand-blasting winds which also seem to resemble Satan's craft.  Oh well, this is not Eden.  Its just the Texas Panhandle.  Semantics really.

 



We are trying roosters again.  Wish us luck!  Hopefully I will not have to relieve this one of his duties as I did the last. 
(The story is too gruesome to share here.)

Bees at the water.  The rocks keep them from drowning.

Corn!  This is the cute Indian corn that I got from my Papa.  Can you still say Indian Corn or should it be Native American corn? 

Even with all of the hurdles, I still love to be in my garden more than any other place.  Ok, so my porch swing comes in a close second.  So I will continue to come to the garden alone.  Hopefully that time will be more, "He walks with me and he talks with me" and less, "Don't go out there because mom is cussing the rabbits."  Hee hee.  We will see how the season goes.



Life on the Prairie is good.  The grass is greening from the rains and it makes for a lovely spot to sit and listen to Spring go by.  Praying the same for where you are!