Money Management Game for Children

Recently, at a trip to the thrift store, we ran across a brand new, still in the package game by Larry Burkett called Money Matters. The game is meant to teach families money management in a fun way. The Money Matters game board is much like the Monopoly board. Players are given a random person or family to role play, with specific life and financial situations. Each player is given a number of cards with specific areas that must be budgeted, such as education, housing, auto maintenance, and many others. Players must pay into these areas until they are paid off, all the while encountering bonuses and set backs along the way.

Without a doubt, the game teaches the reality of financial responsibility. Within the first few plays, all of my children were astonished at the amount of money that had to be spent on expenses for living! They wanted to know if Mom and Dad REALLY have to pay out all that money!

While we did have fun playing the Money Matters game, the younger ones grew tired of it after awhile. We did have to simplify the game for our children because of their ages. The game is probably most appropriate for mature 10 year olds and up, even though it states that even 7 year olds can play. I'll probably put the game away for awhile. It is definitely one worth keeping for the future!


Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

The Ultimate Potluck- Ideas and Inspirations for a Great Potluck Gathering

Probably the easiest to prepare, and least expensive way to entertain for a meal is to host a potluck! Maybe it's because I love the suspense in not knowing just what the meal will turn out to be, but the potlucks I've hosted have ended up being some of the most fun and stress-free events I've hosted!

There are several ways to host a potluck, depending on how much luck you want to rely on, or how much control you want to have over the types of dishes that are brought. Most of my friends love to cook, so I know that when I have a completely random potluck, the dishes will be filling, unique, and something that was actually prepared homemade, rather than a simple bag of potato chips plopped on the table! (That bag of chips, though, is often quickly consumed by some very happy children, by the way!)


So, you have a range of options: from assigning each guest a specific dish (even offering to provide a recipe for that dish), to requesting a certain type of dish (such as appetizer, main dish, side dish or dessert), to having people bring dishes prepared by various local restaurants (a catered potluck of sorts!), to having everyone focus on a certain theme: Italian, vegetarian, finger-foods, soup and sandwiches, desserts only...the possibilities are limitless!

Depending on the circumstance of your group, you can have guests sign up to bring a dish, drinks, plasticware, napkins, cups, ice, etc. Or, you, as the hostess, can supply the necessary non-food items. Evite invitations have a place on the emailed invitation where guests can sign up for what they want to bring. Even with a completely random potluck, I like to word my invitation in such a way to request that my guests bring a unique (to hopefully avoid repetition in dishes) and preferably homecooked dish.

There are several things you'll want to have available when hosing your next potluck: A table or counterspace large enough to hold all the delicious dishes that will be served, plenty of serving utensils for those who forget to bring one for their dish, and I like to keep plenty of extra napkins, plasticware and cups in case more is needed.

One more thing you'll need, (and this is especially true if you're going completely with luck in what people choose to bring!): Have a sense of humor! It is quite possible that the selection of dishes brought may not be as wonderful as you had envisioned! Perhaps everyone decided to bring the same thing, and all you have to choose from are hot dogs or more hot dogs! If you're hosting a potluck for those who would not have such a sense of humor or who would find this a turn-off, then put a little extra effort into organizing the dishes that are brought to the potluck to avoid such disasters! As for me and my great group of friends, we'd have fun anyways...after all, we're just happy to spend time together! I hope that no matter what ends up on the table at your next potluck, you and your guests will feel that way too!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

A Quick Party Decoration Idea For Any Occasion

Here's an idea for a meaningful party decoration I came up with recently, while planning and hosting a going-away party for some friends. You can custom fit this simple decorative idea to any event you might host and you'll only need your computer, a printer and a few pieces of cardstock to create it! Here's what I made:

For my event, our friends were moving away, so I thought it would be a nice touch to include quotes about friendship on cardstock. I found the quotes on the internet. For this particular topic of friendship, I searched for quotes on long distance friendships, and friendship in general. One particular website helpful in finding quotes is Quoteland.com. It has a huge number of quotes all arranged by topic. You can find quotes for virtually any occasion if you do a good internet search!

On your word processor, choose a nice font to match the mood of your gathering, and print the card at the bottom of the page, which will allow you to fold the paper in half to sit upright on the table. Trim the sides to the appropriate size. You can also add images, a fancy border, glue on embellishments...be as fancy and creative as you want!

My event was a pot-luck, so I placed my cards on the dining tables. You can place your cards anywhere you think is appropriate...even on the bathroom counter beside a nice candle!

It's always a plus to add little details, like quote cards, to help set the mood of your occasion. Do you have any suggestions on how to do this? Please leave us a comment and let us about your great ideas!


Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

A Thanksgiving Tradition

Gathering for Thanksgiving is a warm and joyful time for families and friends. Do you have any traditions for this day in which we give thanks? It is important to our family to remember why we celebrate, that Thanksgiving is not merely a day when we pile our plates full of food, but a celebration of the beginnings of our nation and how God has blessed it in so many ways!

Our Thanksgiving tradition is remembering the Five Kernels of Corn, calling to mind the very humble beginnings that the Pilgrims suffered through as they endured that first winter and spring on a meager ration of five kernels of Indian corn. How grateful those Pilgrims must have been to have made it through alive to the time of harvest. I can only imagine what a harvest celebration that must have been!

To commemorate our forefathers' humble beginnings in our nation's history, we place five kernels of dried corn at the each person's plate. The poem, "Five Kernels of Corn" by Hezekiah Butterworth is read aloud. The poem describes the tribulations of that first year in Plymouth, and the gratefulness for the mere five kernels of corn given to each person for their rations:

Five Kernels of Corn
by Hezekiah Butterworth

'Twas the year of the famine in Plymouth of old,
The ice and the snow from the thatched roofs had rolled;
Through the warm purple skies steered the geese o'er the seas,
And the woodpeckers tapped in the clocks of the trees;
And the boughs on the slopes to the south winds lay bare,
and dreaming of summer, the buds swelled in the air.
The pale Pilgrims welcomed each reddening morn;
There were left but for rations Five Kernels of Corn.
Five Kernels of Corn! Five Kernels of Corn!
But to Bradford a feast were Five Kernels of Corn!

"Five Kernels of Corn! Five Kernels of Corn!
Ye people, be glad for Five Kernels of Corn!"
So Bradford cried out on bleak Burial Hill,
And the thin women stood in their doors, white and still.
"Lo, the harbor of Plymouth rolls bright in the Spring,
The maples grow red, and the wood robins sing,
The west wind is blowing, and fading the snow,
And the pleasant pines sing, and arbutuses blow.
Five Kernels of Corn! Five Kernels of Corn!
To each one be given Five Kernels of Corn!"

O Bradford of Austerfi eld hast on thy way,
The west winds are blowing o'er Provincetown Bay,
The white avens bloom, but the pine domes are chill,
And new graves have furrowed Precisioners' Hill!
"Give thanks, all ye people, the warm skies have come,
The hilltops are sunny, and green grows the holm,
And the trumpets of winds, and the white March is gone,
Five Kernels of Corn! Five Kernels of Corn!
Ye have for Thanksgiving Five Kernels of Corn!

"The raven's gift eat and be humble and pray,
A new light is breaking and Truth leads your way;
One taper a thousand shall kindle; rejoice
That to you has been given the wilderness voice!"
O Bradford of Austerfi eld, daring the wave,
And safe through the sounding blasts leading the brave,
Of deeds such as thine was the free nation born,
And the festal world sings the "Five Kernels of Corn."
Five Kernels of Corn! Five Kernels of Corn!
The nation gives thanks for Five Kernels of Corn!

After the poem is read, we each take one kernel of corn and place it in the middle of the table, one at a time, and recall something we are thankful for. Memories and blessings abound as we all enjoy remembering how good the Lord has been!

I hope you'll create some traditions this Thanksgiving that will be meaningful to your family each and every year! I hope you'll share them with us by making a comment!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

The Bird is Done! Turkey Thanksgiving Table Centerpiece Craft is Complete!

The children and I spent part of the day working on the turkey table topper centerpiece that I told you about in my last post. It turned out even better than I expected!

Here is the first stage of the process, before adding all the beautiful color:

Photo Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

I had some old cooking magazines, as well as some thanksgiving grocery store fliers from last week's mail, so I tore pictures in to small pieces and sorted them into piles according to color. We pasted these pieces on to the feathers. each feather a different color. The pictures really created wonderful texture to the feathers. Plus, some of the pictures I tore in to pieces were pictures of food- rich brown turkey, golden yellow corn...so it fits right in with the theme of Thanksgiving dinner! A few finishing touches, and this bird will be ready to adorn our Thanksgiving table: A large red balloon for the gobbler needs to be placed under the turkey's neck, and a tea towel or large cloth napkin can fit as a liner inside the bag to hold the dinner rolls (Or, whatever you'd want to place in the "body" of the turkey!)

Here's our turkey!:

Photo Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Ever Feel Down, Depressed, Sad? Here's Help... Talk Back!

Today when I read this quote it struck me as so profound that I had to share it with you! I know that for some of you, the holidays do not bring feelings of joy and gladness. I pray it would give you just the ammunition you need to face the weeks ahead! If you're feeling down or discouraged, talk back!...

"I say that we must talk to ourselves instead of allowing "ourselves" to talk to us! Do you realize what that means? I suggest that the main trouble in this whole matter of spiritual depression in a sense is this, that we allow our self to talk to us instead of talking to our self. Am I just trying to be deliberately paradoxical? Far from it. This is the very essence of wisdom in this matter. Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? Take those thoughts that come to you in the moment you wake up in the morning. You have not originated them, but they start talking to you, they bring back the problems of yesterday, etc. Somebody is talking. Who is talking to you? Your self is talking to you. Now this man's [David in Psalms 42:5, 11] treatment is this; instead of allowing this self to talk to him, he starts talking to himself. "Why art thou cast down, O my soul?" he asks. His soul had been depressing him, crushing him. So he stands up and says: "Self, listen for a moment, I will speak to you." Do you know what I mean? If you do not, you have had but little experience.

The main art in the matter of spiritual living is to know how to handle yourself. You have to take yourself in hand, you have to address yourself, preach to yourself, question yourself. You must say to your soul: "Why art thou cast down" - what business have you to be disquieted? You must turn on yourself, upbraid yourself, condemn yourself, exhort yourself, and say to yourself: "Hope thou in God" - instead of muttering in this depressed, unhappy way. And then you must go on to remind yourself of God, Who God is, and what God is and What God has done, and what God has pledged Himself to do. Then having done that, end on this great note: defy yourself, and defy other people, and defy the devil and the whole world, and say with this man: "I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance, who is also the health of my countenance and my God." D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

(If you receive the Bluedorn's Teaching the Trivium e-mailing, you may recognize this. It's where I first read the quote!)

Craft Sticks Everywhere!

Imagine what your children could create with 1000 craft sticks, or popsicle sticks as they are sometimes known as?! My children have been asking me to buy craft sticks for them to build with, so a recent trip to Walmart led us over to the craft aisle. I'm always so motivated to create something when we visit any craft store! We purchased the gigantic box of 1000 craft sticks, which was really not a bad price at all, $3-4 if I remember correctly.

Photo Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

By the time everyone was finished, we had craft stick swords, craft stick people, craft stick letters, and a craft stick fort...along with stray craft sticks everywhere! I can only imagine, as the children grow older, what even bigger and better creations their imaginative minds will come up with!

The craft sticks and glue were a great activity to keep everyone occupied for good long time. Along with things like Playdough, I like to have such things on hand that we only get out every once in a while, as something special the children look forward to. Do you have things like this, that the children don't have access to all the time, but makes a great activity for for special times? Please share them with us so we can share in the fun at our house too!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Thanksgiving Turkey Table Centerpiece Craft

These past few days I've been searching the internet for a unique Thanksgiving craft the children and I can make that can be used to decorate the table. I'm familiar with the usual turkey crafts made from handprints and the like. I wanted something different!

Family Crafts has a great, inexpensive Turkey Table Topper Craft just for your Thanksgiving Table. This centerpiece is like a basket-it can hold your dinner rolls, or decorative pine cones, or whatever your imagination can come up with! This is a craft that you and your children can make together. After all, Thanksgiving is about family, and what a better way to involve your children, in preparing for the big event, than by allowing them to share their talents? Their helping you create a festive home can be a blessing to the guests who will visit on Thanksgiving!

The craft requires a paper grocery bag (save yours from your early Thanksgiving grocery shopping if you don't have one!), some paper plates, strips of colorful magazines, a large red or orange balloon, glue, stapler, and various embelishments you might have around the house. Visit Family Crafts for all the details!

Our family will be working on our Turkey Table centerpiece this week. As soon as it's finished, I'll post a picture here for you to see! If you'd like to share what your Thanksgiving table centerpiece will be, send me a link to the picture, and I'll be sure to post it here as well!


Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Smooth, Cold and Full of Yum!...Smoothies

Looking for a filling and nutritious snack? A frequent bedtime snack we have here at our house is a smoothie. We've tried a number of flavors, but, by far our favorite is good ol' strawberry!


The children think it's extra special when I serve the smoothies in a "fancy" glass! I think it's true that food presentation adds a lot to taste experience!

Our smoothies tend to be almost the consistency of soft-served ice cream--it is freezing cold and creamy!


Here's my recipe for a strawberry smoothie:


2 cups plain yogurt

1 c frozen strawberries

1 t vanilla

12 drops liquid stevia extract (a natural herbal sweetener--you could use honey or sugar instead), or to taste


Place all ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl and let sit for a couple minutes to ever-so-slightly thaw the strawberries. With a hand blender, blend the ingredients until smooth and creamy. Serve! (This makes a good breakfast too!)


The fruit you use, and amounts, can be altered. We also like banana smoothies, peach smoothies, blueberry smoothies, and mango smoothies...or a mixture of fruits!


You'll notice I sweeten our smoothies with stevia, a natural herbal sweetener. Whenever I can get away with it, I try to substitute sugar and artificial sweeteners with natural sweeteners like stevia and honey. It is so much better for your health than refined sugar and chemical, artificial sweeteners.

Do YOU have a favorite smoothie flavor? What about a unique add-in to a smoothie? Variety is the spice of life and we'd love to hear about it so we can try it!


Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Making Dinner From Thin Air- Menu Ideas For Nearly Empty Pantries

Have you ever come to the end of the week or month, just before a trip to the grocery store, and stood before the almost empty refrigerator and pantry wondering what on earth you can conjure up for dinner from the limited selection of ingredients before you? I've got a great resource to do the thinking for you!

Allrecipes.com is a handy source for finding recipes, but it also has a special search function that allows you to type in the ingredients you have on hand to use in a recipe, and it will search for recipes that use those ingredients! No more staring blankly into your cupboards at a loss for what's for dinner! The search also allows you to input the ingredients you DON'T want to include in a recipe. This has been a great way to creatively use the ingredients I have on hand with tried and tested recipe, rather than my coming up with a spur-of-the-moment concoction that may or may not be tasty, as Allrecipes has reviews and ratings of the recipes that are posted on their site. You can read reviewers suggestions as to what they liked or disliked about the recipe, and they often give suggestions on how to improve or alter the recipe.

So, the next time you are at a loss for what to make from a limited selection of ingredients, try Allrecipes for a yummy new dish to grace your table!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Free Homeschool Science Experiments Revisited

Just wanted to post to all of you who read earlier in Domestic Legacies about the Krampf free weekly Science experiments that Mr. Krampf at Krampf.com is finally sending actual Science experiments again through e-mail (They're also posted on his website). We had been itching for more experiments through the past few weeks of his series on Science Fairs (which was good reading, but we like the hands on experiments that he sends!)

This past week's lesson was called "Electrical Tape" and is all about the positive and negative charges on a roll of adhesive tape, that when quickly pulled creates sparks that can be seen in the dark, exhibiting the property of triboluminescence--big word, but the experiment was simple enough to be enjoyed by even the younger ones!

Unique Use for Your Crockpot- Homemade Yogurt!

When you think of crockpots, you might think of using them to make one-pot meals, simmering something yummy all day long while you work, and dinner's ready in the evening. Crockpots are great for that, but here's another use: make yogurt! One quart of yogurt at our local grocery store costs almost 3 dollars. You can make a whole lot more yogurt so easily in the crockpot for a lot less money than to buy it already made! That's important if you enjoy making smoothies and such, like I shared with you in my last post! Besides, yogurt is full of good bacteria so essential for intestinal health, and even in preventing illness!

Here's how easy it is to make yogurt in a crockpot:

1/4 c storebought, plain yogurt OR 1/2 c homemade yogurt

8 c whole milk

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Pour milk in crockpot, put on lid, turn crockpot to low.

Leave for 2 1/5 hours.

Turn off crockpot, leave cover on. Let sit for 3 hours.

Take one to two cups of the warm milk and place in a mixing bowl. Mix in the storebought OR homemade yogurt.

Pour this mixture into the crockpot and stir into the rest of the milk.

Put lid on crockpot, fold and put a heavy towl over crockpot to insulate (leave crockpot off). Let sit overnight.

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Place yogurt into containers and store in the refrigerator. Keeps about 2 weeks.

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

The consistency of homemade yogurt is typically a bit thinner than storebought. If you continue to make yogurt from your other batches of homemade yogurt and you find it is becoming too thin, then purchase some plain yogurt from the store for your next batch. In the batch I just made, there was a lot of liquidy whey separated out. You may wish to carefully scoop out the yogurt around the whey for thicker yogurt, but I'd rather keep the nutrition from the whey and have thinner yogurt!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Cowboy Days at New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum

Photo Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

This past March, our family went to Cowboy Days at the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum. Considering that we are not from the West, this was entertainment unlike anything we had seen before!

Cowboy Days had lots of live entertainment and activities for us to see, including a Western Shootout reenactment, carriage rides, horse training demonstrations, vendors, pony rides, roping demonstratios and much more, in addition to the museum itself. We enjoyed watching old-fashioned cowboy biscuits being made in a cast iron pot over a camp fire by women in men in vintage Western attire. The best part was tasting them! The children had a great time trying out their roping skills on pretend steer made of metal bars.

Cowboy Days is an annual event at the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum in early March. If you're in the area, it's a great event to attend for the whole family!


Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

He Said, She Said- Noting Memorable Quotes from Our Children

Children can say some of the sweetest things, can't they? Their naivete and innocence lend to some incredibly entertaining, and sometimes deep thoughts! How many times one of my children have said something especially adorable, and I thought to myself, "I'm going to remember that...", only to forget days, or even hours later!

I read somewhere awhile ago an idea which has helped lessen the number of times a memorable quote out of the mouths of one of my babes has escaped my memory, and I want to share it with you! It's as simple as keeping a notepad and pen out--just for the purpose of jotting down a precious saying, as soon as it's spoken! My notepad is in the kitchen where it is easily within reach. While it's still on my mind, I'll run and jot down what I want to remember. Sometimes it's a short sentence, and sometimes it's a part of a conversation my child and I have had.I include what I have said and what my child has said. I make sure to include the name and age of the person whose quote I am writing down. That sounds too simple, but having the ability to write--the pen and paper is right there, HAS enabled me to just go do it while it's on my mind! I also use my notepad to jot down other immediate things, like a phone number or grocery item, but I keep those special quotes, for the most part, on separate pages so I can tear them out and file them all together.

With my file of quotes, I began a journal of sorts on the computer. I not only type out the quote, but sometimes also give a little background to the conversation or write a quick memento or accomplishment the child had achieved. (So-and-so just lost his first tooth...she is becoming quite a reader....he has been helping his daddy with ...) I am quite behind on typing out all the quotes, but, because I have them together in the file with names and ages, it shouldn't be too difficult to catch up, if I can just get a chance to sit down and do it!

There are other things you can do with some of the extra special quotes you collect. Using a nice font on your computer, print out a sweet quote and perhaps add a nice snapshot of the child. Find a small frame for the printout and you have unique gift idea for grandparents! The Dollar Store often has some nice frames for very little money.

I encourage you to jot down those memorable quotes and conversations you have with your children. I regret the many sweet things my oldest said years ago that have long escaped my memory! May you and your family create a legacy of precious quotes with which to reminisce in the years to come!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Magnificent Travel Destination: Carlsbad Caverns

A recent wandering led us to the magnificent Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico.

These photos, as incredible as they are, do not do this place justice!:

Photo Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Imagine a point, the size of the head of a pin...take that point and stick it on the bottom portion of the photos. THAT is about the size a person would be in this picture! Are you starting to get the idea of the magnitude of this place?!

Photo Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

The size of Carlsbad is extraordinary...we walked for several MILES along the route that went from room to gigantic room! You might think of a cave as being cramped and crowded, but that is not true here...the ceiling was stories high and very open in the various rooms, the path we walked was several MILES long! We felt like tiny little specks among the thousands of stalactites and stalagmites.

During certain times of the year there is a bat flight to and from the cave in the morning and evening. We weren't able to see that, but hear that it is also a sight, to see thousands upon thousands of bats leaving or coming back to the cave all at once!

If you ever have a chance to visit Carlsbad Caverns, even if it is out of the way along your journey, you will not regret it!

Have YOU been to Carlsbad Caverns? If so, when? Tell us about your visit!


Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Living on Less and Having Fun Doing So!

My family recently had the opportunity to do without heat for a few days. Where we live we, have a swamp cooler, rather than "refrigerated air", which requires us to choose each season when to call the maintenance man to switch us over from cold to heat. We cannot freely switch back and forth between the two. Now, where we live, we've not yet had freezing temperatures, but we have had a few nights where it's been in the upper 30s at night, but warmer during the day. Those cold nights have taught us a thing or two!

Granted, those nights were cold, but we saw that, with a little effort, we could live comfortably with our thermostat turned down lower in winter! A few extra blankets on the bed, and some sweaters made us quite comfortable. And we actually found that we slept better in the cooler air!

For fun a few months ago, the children and I decided to pretend we live in the days before electricity was discovered. As the sun went down, and it became darker and darker, we sat by the light of one candle, telling stories and enjoying each other's company! No tv or radio, just us! It was fun brushing our teeth and getting ready for bed by candlelight, and we could see how people back then went to bed at sundown and rose with the sun in the morning...it is much more practical. Nevertheless, I was glad when the children went to bed and I could flip on the computer to check my e-mail!

Food is one more area where it can be a challenge to do without. In trying to see how much money I could save, I decided I would not buy it if I could halfway easily make it myself for cheaper! Our grocery bill that week was a lot less, and I had fun finding creative homemade things to substitute for the usual pre-packaged items we usually ate. In this area, there are a whole lot of things we could do without if we had to, and we'd still live quite well with just the basics!

Voluntarily doing without is not so bad, even fun, especially when you know it's temporary! But, it does teach a valuable lesson: we can survive, even thrive, on less if we have to, and we could actually save money by choosing to do so!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Legacies From Dough- Salt Dough Ornaments and Creations

Looking for some good holiday crafts? It's the perfect time of the year to start on those fun Christmas projects that can be used as gifts, or to decorate your home! Salt dough is a very inexpensive, versatile medium for creating all kinds of goodies! And, if you preserve them correctly, some of them could even become part of your legacy!

Last year I started on a pretty big project that I'd like to finish this year: Creating salt dough ornaments to use on a Jessie Tree. (The idea of a Jessie Tree is taken from Isaiah 11:1 in the Old Testament and uses symbols and Bible verses that point the way to the New Testament story of the birth of Christ and our need for salvation. You can find out how to make one, with free templates you and your children can color or use to make salt dough or other types of ornaments, as well as the verses that go along with them here).

These are a few of the ornaments I made. They still need to be painted:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

You'll notice that several of the ornaments cracked during cooking. A little glue should fix this before I paint them, but beware, as I learned the hard way, not to make your salt dough creations too thin!

Here's the basic recipe for salt dough:

4 c all-purpose flour

1 c salt

1 1/2 cups hot tap water

2 tsp vegetable oil (optional)

food coloring to color the dough (optional)

Mix flour and salt together in mixing bowl. If you are going to add food coloring you can mix it into the water. Gradually add water to form a firm dough (you can add the vegetable oil now if you'd like, to make the dough a better texture to work with). If the dough is too sticky, add a little more flour, or if the dough is too crumbly, add a tiny bit more water, until you get a pliable dough. Knead the dough until it is nice and elastic.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

Form ornaments, letters, shapes, figurines from the dough using rolling pins, straws, toothpicks, cookie cutters or whatever tools you can find!

Here are some other types of Christmas ornaments I have made and still need to paint and put a ribbon on to hang them on the tree!:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Place the salt-dough creations on the cookie sheet, leaving some space around each one. Baking time will vary according to the thickness of the salt dough creations. Make sure each part is completely dry and hard. If parts are browning during cooking, you can cover those areas with aluminum foil

Cool completely. You can now paint the creations, add ribbons and other decorative elements.

To preserve your creations, seal them on all sides with clear varnish or polyurethane spray.

If you have extra dough, it does not keep well, only a couple of days in the refrigerator.

One thing we did a few years ago, which makes a wonderful keepsake, is make handprints in salt dough. I first cut out circles using a large lid to fit the hand, then had each child press their hand in the dough to make their handprint. Using a toothpick, making tiny dots that run together, I printed each child's name, age, and the year. We already enjoy seeing how much they've grown when they now place their hands in their handprints from several years ago!

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Children love making salt dough creations! I have used this project to keep little ones occupied while babysitting, and at the end of the day they get to take home their creation to their mom and dad. I've also seen online some very intricate pieces of art formed from salt dough! It's pretty amazing what you can do with simple flour, salt, and water!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Got Love?

In building legacies for our families it's possible to get caught up in chasing after those things that are not eternal, that, to human sight are beautiful and valuable, but in the end will not last. While those things are some of the enjoyments of living here on earth, priority is important. So I thought it might be helpful to mention the most basic of all legacies you'll pass down to your family: Love.



The King James Bible refers to love as "charity". I'm sure you've heard the verses in I Corinthians before, but, this time, really let them speak to you! See just how essential it is to the Lord that we have this basic ingredient as the foundation of all we say and do, and then ask Him to show you the areas that you need to better apply this. Most importantly, ask Him to fill you with this kind of love! If you are a Christian, it is readily available to you upon your asking in faith!:

Though I speak with the tongues of mean and of angels,

and have not charity,

I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

And though I have the gift of prophecy,

and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge;

and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains,

and have not charity,

I am nothing.

and though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor,

and though I give my body to be burned,

and have not charity,

it profiteth me nothing.

Charity suffereth long, and is kind;

Charity envieth not;

charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Charity never faileth; but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail;

whether there be tongues, they shall cease;

whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away...

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three;

but the greatest of these is charity.



I Corinthians 13: 1-8, 13

Oh, how many times I've focused on the doing of things for my family...but it was not grounded in charity (love)! My motivations were fulfilling what I ought to do, or being able to check one more thing off my "to do" list! I did these things out of selfishness, not love! It really hit me when I read that I could even be a martyr for my faith, but if I did not do it in LOVE, it would profit me nothing! That's a pretty clear statement that our motives, our drive, is of extreme importance to our Lord!



I pray that each one of you reading Domestic Legacies would have a burning love in your hearts first toward the Lord and that that love would spill over abundantly into your relationships with your husband, your children, and with everyone you meet! I pray that love would translate into action, and not be mere sentiment! THAT is a legacy worth placing at the top of our priority list!



Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Great Free Simple Science Experiments

Wanting to integrate some hands-on experiments into your family's science studies, but don't want to become a scientist-gone-mad in planning for and setting up a complicated, time-consuming experiment? I found a great resource for simple, easy to execute science experiments, and best of all- it's FREE!



Each week, the children and I check our e-mail inbox to find a fun, quick experiment just waiting for us to try! Robert Krampf has a website FULL of free, easy science experiments which are all archived according to the specific field of science it is related to (Chemistry, Biology, Physics, etc.) We signed up for his free weekly e-mailing which explains how to do that week's experiment, as well as a quick video showing just how he performed the experimcnt.

A recent experiment we performed was on the topic of Chromatography, the science of separating chemicals based on how they stick to paper. This may sound complicated, but it's not! Even our preschool aged children enjoyed helping with this!

First we gathered our supplies, which we already had in the house:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Materials needed: Coffee filter strips (or watercolor paper), rubbing alcohol, glass jars, various brands of black ink pens, and scissors for cutting the coffee filter into 1 inch wide strips.

Next, on each strip of coffee filter, we placed a black dot of ink about 1/2 inch from one end, then marked the other end with a descriptive word of the pen used (like the brand) to distinguish it from the others. After pouring about 1/4 inch of rubbing alcohol into the jars, we placed the strips of paper, dot side down, into the jars, allowing the strips to stand up in the jars without submerging the dots. The coffee filter strips immediately began to absorb the alcohol:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

We checked on the progress of our Chromatography after a few minutes, and found the ink starting to rise in lines on the coffee filter strips:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

After waiting about 20 minutes, we noticed a band of ink forming on the coffee filter strip. The individual colors that comprised the black ink had separated out according to how well they stick to paper!:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Chromatography wasn't on our list of things to study that week, but it was a very nice, quick detour from our usual Science studies that allowed us to get some hands-on, fun learning in! Would you like to know where you can sign up for these great experiments? Just go to Robert Krampf's Website , and come back soon to Domestic Legacies and tell us what experiments you and your children have enjoyed!

P.S. I noticed the last couple of weeks, Mr. Krampf has not been posting an experiment, but info about science fair experiments. So, if you've signed up for the experiments, don't despair...once his series on science fairs is finished, I'm sure the experiments will be back! Go to his website for tons of experiments you can do now!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Stress-Free Scripture Memory!

If there is one legacy that I want to leave my children, it is that of hiding God's Word in their precious hearts! All the facts and knowledge in the world pale in comparison to knowing Him and His Word, and yet, it is easily forgotten among the other tasks we strive to check off on our already full checklists of things to do! As important as it is, I don't want scripture memory to become a burden, or a stressful, performance-oriented task, which it can quickly become if treated like just another school subject. I want my children to have delight in learning God's Word, don't you?

The Maxwell Family at Titus 2.com recently had a wonderful suggestion for scripture memory that our family has adopted. It is virutally effortless and stress-free! Hanging on the wall of our dining room is a wipe-off marker board on which I put the verse we are currently working on:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Before breakfast and lunch, just after we pray, we recite the memory verse two times before we eat. So, in one day's time, we have reviewed the verse four times. When the verse is new, to aid the children who can't yet read, I break up the verse into small segments and have the children repeat after me. After everyone is getting the hang of the verse, we all say it together two times per meal. The children hear my enthusiasm for the Word as we recite together, and it is contagious!...Remaining reverent ,we use inflection in our voices with excitement, rather than a dull, monotone voice. With little time and effort spent I have to say that THIS REALLY WORKS!! Once we've all memorized the current verses, I put them on an index card and we occasionally review the past verses to keep them fresh in our minds.

I want to stress to you that the verses children of any age are capable of learning do not have to be short and simple! As you see in the picture above, we are memorizing Titus 2: 1-5. The verses we learned a few weeks ago were Proverbs 2: 1-8 Funny thing is, my younger ones are faster at memorizing than I am! It is SO precious to hear them recite by themselves long verses of scripture (with an occasional prompt or two)! My purpose in telling you this is not to boast, but to "raise the bar" for you, so to speak.! The Lord only knows how He might use these verses later in their lives!

I really hope you'll try this method of scripture memory. It's been the fastest and most enjoyable I've found! Let us know what you think!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

What You'd Give for a Good Night's Rest!

Over the years of taking care of little ones, especially babies, there have been many nights I have not slept well, with getting up in the night to nurse, or answering the cry of a little one who's had a bad dream, potty training at nighttime, or just paying too much attention to the baby monitor with a newborn...hearing every little sound! Can you relate, sleep-deprived mamas? It's usually easier to be cheerful and on top of things when you're well rested, and I hope this post will help some of you achieve that!

Here's what I've found that helps me sleep more soundly...you'll laugh at how simple it is, but for me, it really works! It has been determined scientifically that a dark sleep environment is best for good quality sleep, but that is not always possible to achieve, especially when travelling, or when your family likes to use a nightlight! So, I have my own personal room darkener--a sleep mask! Mine is not the light, silky kind you might be picturing, that lets in a lot of light. It is quite padded with an adjustable velcro strap for a good fit. I take this thing everywhere, as I have found it so much easier to fall asleep and sleep well when I am sleeping in the dark!

My sleep mask is about worn out, I've used it so much, and thinking I might not be able to find another one like it, I searched for sleep masks online and found several good quality masks for under $10. I even found one that does not smash your eyes, to allow for comfort and better REM sleep (Rapid Eye Movement). I'll have to decide whether to buy another one just like the one I have, or to try a new kind! I would recommend, whichever type of mask you choose, to find one in black. That way you'll get the best light absorbsion around your eyes where the light can sometimes leak in.

My sleep mask has a little pocket in front which holds earplugs. When my husband is home and is able to listen out for the children at night while sleeping, I'll sometimes wear these. Since I'm on "duty" as a mom 24 hours a day, this is a wonderful way to go into my own little, relaxing retreat while sleeping, with the comfort in knowing my husband will wake me up if the children need me. If I do need to keep an ear out at night, sometimes I'll just wear one earplug (I know, crazy me!) and will be able to block out some sound, while st ill being able to hear someone call.

I hope some of you will take my suggestion and try using a face mask. If you are able to study the design of some of the better ones, it might not be too hard to sew your own (though I do recommend something thicker and more padded than the old sild kind, but you may find it works just fine!) I know being a mother can mean many sleepless nights, but these days are not forever...and how worth it our children are! Here's to contentedly sleeping babies and sweet dreams to you!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Sewing Machine Gone Wild

Are you a do-it-yourselfer? I really enjoy learning basic skills that, to the current generation, may be considered "old-fashioned" and a lost art! A legacy that I want to pass on to my girls is the ability to sew. I am having to teach myself to sew along the way, and it's a fun process! (Especially figuring out the terminology on the patterns- it can be like reading a foreign language! I've found the book New Complete Guide to Sewing (Readers Digest) to be a very helpful resource.)

I thought I'd show you one of the projects I worked on last year. We love The Little House on the Prairie book series, and my daughter wanted a dress to look like Laura Engalls Wilder, so I determined I would sew her one! I had no idea how much work would be involved, actually having three separate items (the dress, pinafore and bonnet) to sew, but I think it turned out pretty well. The dress needs ironing in the picture, but you get the idea!:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Another project I completed awhile ago was a machine sewn quilt. Quilts can add such charm and a cozy feeling to a room!

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Before I completed this quilt, I had sewn a couple of baby quilts as gifts. It's so wonderful to be able to give something you've put so much of yourself into. I think that's one reason I want to pass this skill on to my daughters. Sure, you can go to the store and easily purchase clothing, or a quilt (and honestly, that's what I usually do) but it sure is nice to have the ability to create from raw materials a beautiful handmade item!

My current project is an overnight bag in the style of Vera Bradley. I am making up the pattern myself including the insertion of the zippe to close the bagr, so there is a good possibility that things could go very wrong! But, I love the challenge of trying to figue out how to put it all together, and hopefully, the end result will be a nice bag! You probably won't get to see that one completed for awhile!

Do you have any sewing projects you're working on or completed? Tell us about them--and if you have pictures online, give us the link to them so we can see them! Or, if you want, email them to me and I'll update the post and display them here! You'll find the Contact Me link to your right.

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies in association with Amazon

Devouring Education- Learning While Eating!

Our family spends A LOT of time eating...does yours? Seems like if we're not eating a meal, we're having a snack, and that's good--the children are growing like weeds! So, in an attempt to multi-task, I took out some educational placemats that had been in storage. Now we can feed our brains while stuffing our mouths!

Some of our mind-building "entrees" include a U.S. Map placemat, World Map placemat, Addition Facts placemat, Alphabet placemat, Human Anatomy placemat, and U.S. Presidents placemat...

The plan seems to be working, as some wonderful mealtime discussion has resulted in topics ranging from Geography, History, Anatomy, Math, and Civics! I rotate them around the table every so often, so each person- young and old- has a chance to devour the various subjects! They are indeed tasty!

One final idea for using placemats to help educate is to make your own! Gear the placemat toward whatever topic you'd like. If one of my children is having difficulty memorizing a few of her math facts, for example, I'll make up a quick placemat out of cardstock (nothing fancy) and write only a few on the placemat--that way she can really focus on a couple at a time and not be overwhelmed with information! You can put the paper in a plastic page protector (or laminate it, though I usually don't go to that much trouble, as we don't use these types of placemats very long!) I think it's a great way to aid in memorizing, especially the areas that we're having trouble with recall!

Do you have a favorite eduational mealtime activity that you'd like to share with us? Leave a comment and let us know!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

The Wonders of GOOT- Natural Help for Colds and Infection

The seasons are changing, and it's time for those pesky colds and flu that come with colder weather. Since Domestic Legacies is all about sharing with you simple, practical ideas on blessing your family, I've got to tell you about this easy, inexpensive way to naturally help your family get over cold weather sickness! It's called GOOT, and it is an acronym for Garlic Olive Oil Tincture.

Before I discovered GOOT, we would have to take our children to the doctor at least once per year to get antibiotics for ear infections (And we were trying to eat well and stay healthy!) While it hasn't always kept us from catching colds and the flu, and especially viral infections, It HAS effectively kept our family out of the doctor's office and away from antibiotics while all the bugs are being passed around! We seem to get over the bugs much quicker, sickness is less intense, and we don't suffer with secondary infections.

GOOT utilizes the natural antibiotic, anti-fungal, and anti-microbial properties of garlic that you can actually apply safely to any part of your body that is fighting infection. But, for our purposes here, I'll just say that applying it to the feet, where it is best absorbed into the skin and then into the bloodstream, as well as to the neck around swollen lymph nodes under the ears, the chest and back where congestion accumulates in the lungs has helped us resolve those colds and flu without complications! GOOT helps attack secondary infections, like earaches, that so often pop up while you're sick, so that your body can naturally resolve the problem, often without needing antibiotics!

How do you make GOOT? I've seen several versions of the recipe, but I'm going to tell you a simpler version than the traditional recipes, which I use for our family. It seems to work just as well. At the first sign of sickness, you'll want to make a fresh batch:

GOOT

6 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil

6-7 smashed (not minced or even chopped up) fresh garlic cloves-Just smash them with the flat side of a large chef's knife on your cutting board.

Place the Olive Oil in a small saucepan and warm the oil over very low heat. This will probably take less than a minute--you're not trying to cook the oil, just gently warm it!

Remove from heat and add the smashed garlic cloves. Allow to steep about 15 minutes so the oils from the garlic can come out into the olive oil. Your kitchen will smell like a yummy Italian restaurant!

Apply three times per day to the feet (be sure to wear socks to absorb extra oil so you don't harm the floor!) and any other body part that is affected: chest and back for congestion, lymph nodes around neck for earaches and sore throats. Be aware that the oil can stain clothes, furniture, sheets, or other surfaces! Rub the oil into the area to increase its absorbsion. You can also strain the oil, to make sure no particles of garlic are left, and place a drop or two of the oil into ears that are hurting from earache.

I usually leave the smashed garlic in the oil and, if it is fairly cool in the house, keep the sauce pan covered and on the counter so I remember to use it!. Most recipes say to refrigerate. Leaving the garlic in the oil over time will help more and more garlic goodness to seep into the olive oil! I have noticed, especially on little ones, however, that if the GOOT is too strong, that it can cause a little rash on sensitive skin, so keep that in mind!

I'm sure it's a good idea to tell you that I am not trying to replace the advice of your doctor, so do use common sense...If a cold or flu is not getting better or only continues to worsten, if breathing becomes difficult, or you just have a feeling you or your loved one needs to see a doctor, then do so!

Here's hoping you won't even need GOOT this season, but if the runny noses start, and you know what's coming, then give GOOT a try! We'd love to hear how it helps your family!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Eggstraordinary Oatmeal- Pumping Up the Protein in Your Breakfast

While we're building those wonderful legacies in our home, we also have to think about the practical! A must at our house is starting the day off with a good breakfast. But, mornings can sure be busy, so, breakfast needs to be prepared quickly and must stick with us a long time. Breakfast convenience foods, like cold cereal, are typically expensive and are often not too healthy. So, I'm sure you know the one food that comes to the rescue every time in terms of convenience, nutrition and ability to quickly satisfy a hungry crowd around your table...oatmeal!
Oatmeal is cost-effective, cooks quickly, and fills tummies with whole grain goodness. Our family likes oatmeal- there's nothing like a bowl of warm sweet oatmeal with puddles of butter and honey, especially on a cold day! We often top ours with chopped apple, raisins, honey, butter and cinnamon:


photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies


The one thing that was lacking, however, in our quick, inexpensive breakfast was protein! I do sometimes cook oatmeal with milk, but was looking for something more when I came across a recipe for breakfast porridge. The recipe was more elaborate than I wanted to prepare most mornings, but it did have a great protein-boosting idea--As soon as the oatmeal is cooked, turn off the heat and whisk in, one at a time, a couple of eggs. (For 1 1/2 cups uncooked oatmeal I use two eggs.) The heat from the oatmeal perfectly cooks the eggs. (No icky glops of scrambled egg!) The texture is creamy and we don't even notice a difference in taste. So, now in the mornings, our brains are super-charged with a well balanced meal! Our concentration is better, and we can actually make it to lunch without those groans of hunger during school time! If that sounds good to you too, why don't you try it?
Do you like a little variety in your breakfasts? Is there something different your family enjoys on their oatmeal that you'd like to share? Do you have any protein boosting ideas that help make breakfast satisfy hunger longer? We'd love to hear about it! Maybe we'll all be inspired to try something different on our bowl of Quaker in the morning!
Speaking of hearing from you, if you'd like me to notify you when a new post is made here at Domestic Legacies, please email me and I'll add you to the list. It's easy to forget to come back for a visit, and I thought this would be a good way to help you remember! Your email address will ONLY be used for the purpose of notifying you of an update, and, of course, I'd never sell or share your address with anyone! And, if you decide you don't want notices of updates anymore, just e-mail me to let me know, and I'll remove your address from the list! You'll find a link to email me to the right on this page! I hope I'll hear from you soon!


Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Journal For Two- Journaling With Your Children

The idea of a journal sometimes conjures up images of secrecy and private thoughts (perhaps negative) meant to be shared with no one else, and kept under lock and a tiny key. But, a few weeks ago I heard an idea that leads to just the opposite of keeping hidden secrets. It was that of journaling with your children. ...Now THAT sounds like a legacy in the making!...

Taking out a crisp, clean notebook, all full of potential, I thoughtfully wrote a note to my daughter on the first page. I told her this notebook was just for the two of us, to write letters back and forth, and that we could write about anything and everything we wanted: something we thought was funny, a struggle we're dealing with, a crazy thought, our hopes, our dreams... In her note back to me she told me she loved the idea, and we've continued to write back and forth since that day.

My daughter and I agreed we'd write when we had something we wanted to say. It's not a daily requirement. It is a special way for us to communicate together. I vowed to myself this journal would not be a place to criticize or "preach" to my daughter in any way. She will not be the only one opening her heart, I want her to know my heart too!

I'm so thankful for the close relationship my daughter and I share. But, perhaps one day, as she matures, there will be things she'll want to tell or ask me that she will be better able to express in writing. This journal is one more way to open up lines of communication between us. Without a doubt, this Journal for Two will be treasured for years to come!

Do you and your children journal together? We'd love to hear your stories about it! If you've just read this and want to start a Journal for Two, let us know what happens! I pray it will draw you and your children even closer together!

ScottsHelper Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Homeschooling with a Deck of Cards

Do fierce battles raging in your home sound educational? Our home has become a war zone with a simple deck of cards...and the children are actually learning!

A friend told me about using a deck of cards to reinforce math concepts. You remember playing the card game War when you were young, don't you?...Where you evenly deal out all the cards, face down, and each player lays down one card from their pile at a time and whoever has the biggest number, or card of most value wins. Play continues till one person has all the cards. Is this jogging your memory?

That game in its original form is great for reinforcing the value of numbers: which number is larger and smaller. (You may want to remove the face cards from the deck, but we typically uses Aces as 1 and Jokers as 0.) But, taking this a step further, instead of winning a match with the highest number, you can use the battles to reinforce math facts! When each player turns over a card, the cards can be either added, subtracted, multiplied or divided (decide before starting the game which you'd like to do), and the first one to shout out the correct answer wins! This has definately helped my oldest get that much needed practice without her even realizing she is doing so! I'd say that's putting a bit of sugar with your medicine, eh?!

The idea of homeschooling with a deck of cards is time saving, inexpensive, has multiple uses, has virtually no preparation time, and is FUN for both parents and children! I'd say that fits well into Domestic Legacy's criteria!

Can you think of some other great ideas on how to use a deck of cards to homeschool? Why don't you share them with us here! Looking forward to your comments!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

The Birth of a Legacy

There's a whole lot of talking going on in cyberspace these days! It seems everyone has something to say! Today I join in adding to the sea of words flowing from keyboards across the globe!

It is my observation that many of us live our lives in the virtual world of the internet; it has become a refuge from reality... from the tangible. As a wife and mother I want nothing LESS than to take away more of the precious time others could be sharing with their families.

Rather, it is my desire to share with you things that have made my life a little easier, the journey more fulfilling. Perhaps you, in turn, might find something useful and practical to free up your time, so your focus can be on creating the legacies your family will treasure and pass down for generations to come! Perhaps together, we can inspire each other in birthing those legacies that come most beautifully from the heart of the home.

If you're like me, an unlimited supply of time and money is not your reality, yet you have a full heart that desires to bless your family. Domestic Legacies was created to share practical helps, ideas, recipes, and solutions...with some fun thrown in along the way!

So, feel free to kick off your shoes and be at home here!...It's a good thing to get away every once in awhile and recharge your batteries...But, don't stay TOO long!...

Go and create joyful, tangible memories in your OWN home...Legacies are often built from the simple things that touch most deeply the hearts of the ones we love.

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies