CandyFoote

Jars

I love jars!  Yes, jars!

We started a penny jar a few months ago. 

What fun!

We started out with a quart size canning jar and kept throwing in our pennies.  Every time someone comes home with pennies, into the jar they go.  Pennies can always be found under the couch cushions or thrown on the floor in some corner.  The kids have a great time searching for them.

We had to move up to a gallon jar a few weeks ago.  We are almost to the half way mark!

My two year old loves to get the pennies out to play with.  Earlier she made a big pile, then ran and jumped into them.  (I guess she had more fun jumping in those leaves the other day than I realized!)

The other kids like to get out the penny jar to help them to do their math problems.

Sometimes it's fun to take them out and simply count them or just look at them. 

Everyone is guessing how many pennies can fit in a gallon jar.  So, what do you think???

Another fun item to collect in jars is buttons.

The kids love to cut the buttons off from old clothes in order to throw them into the button jar.  They are fun to look at and count too.  They also work great as a math manipulative.

I use glass gallon jars in the kitchen too.

They make great containers for flour, sugar, oatmeal, or anything else you may use a lot of.  I put a pretty cloth top on them with a piece of matching paper that says what it is on the front.

The ideas go on and on.

Like I said, I love jars!

Clean Toilet!

`Okay, here's a subject nobody wants to talk about! Keeping the toilet clean is a challenge.  Not due to lack of flushing, but because of it!!  We have the dreaded hard water!  Ugh! I hate using harsh chemicals to clean it, but nothing else seemed to work.  Well, I finally gave Borax a try.  After all, I always have it on hand to make laundry and dish soap. It worked!  I mean it REALLY worked!  I poured some in and brushed it right back off.  No waiting time at all!  The toilet came out sparkling clean! 

Hey, what are your great ideas?  I would love to hear your cleaning ideas!

Ugh! The House is a Mess!!!

Do you feel overwhelmed due to the chaotic mess all around you? 

I know how you feel!

It seems the messier things are

the less motivation I have!

If I could only remember that it only takes

15 minutes.

Really!  In just 15 minutes any room can look

decent.

Give it a try!  Then come back and let me know how

it turned out!

Don't have 15 minutes?

Try 5!

Well, I am off to set the timer!

Laundry Soap

What's the worst part of making your own laundry soap?

Well, for me it's grating the soap!

I absolutely love using homemade laundry soap, but the

 grating part tends to be a little time consuming.

Solutions?

#1 - You know that the kids love to do it, so let them!

#2 - When I have the time, I grate up a lot of soap and store

it in a ziplock bag.

I love it when it's time to make laundry soap and I just have

to reach for that ziplock bag!