A visit to Hardy Berry Farm!

This morning was our October MOTT at Hardy Berry Farm... so fun! I really enjoyed visiting with moms I already know & meeting a few new ones.

The jump pillow was a favorite!

And we took a hayride down through the woods to visit the pumpkin patch:

Love this picture of all the littles learning about pumpkins! :)

Then we visited the animals...

And I'll leave you with a pic of two of the little Martin minions... look at those angelic little faces! :)

Halloween cuteness!

Halloween is a week from today... so to kick off the countdown, here are a few little snazzy ideas for you & the kiddos!

How about a rousing game of Halloween bingo? Or ridiculously cute treat bags?  Check out these FREE printables:

And here's a little mix-&-match pumpkin game that would be perfect for preschoolers... & felt is crazy-cheap, which is perfect for the budget:

And have you decorated your pumpkins yet? It's on our agenda for this weekend... love these ideas! 

From left to right:

1. Chevron pumpkin -- done with painter's tape & whatever paint you have on-hand (spray paint, acrylic, etc will work)
2. Cookie cutter pumpkin -- use a sturdy metal cookie cutter & a mallet to cut shapes (tutorial here)
3. Button pumpkin -- done with buttons & straight pins... how easy is that?

And I'll leave you on this note... don't know about your house, but this printable is more than a little appropriate for ours :)

Tasty Tuesday: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

These muffins just taste like fall... what's not to love about pumpkin & chocolate?!? Thanks so much to Emily for sharing this recipe!

The Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp allspice or ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup solid packed, canned pumpkin puree
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

The Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place rack in middle of oven. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners or spray each cup with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, spices & salt.

With a mixer, cream butter & sugar until light & fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture & pumpkin puree, beginning & ending with flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chips.

Fill muffin cups evenly with the batter using a large spoon or ice cream scoop. Place in oven & bake for about 18-20 mins, or until firm to the touch & a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Place on a wire rack to cool.

Note: the batter can be also be baked in a 9-inch loaf pan instead of muffin cups. Butter or spray the loaf pan with cooking spray. Bake the loaf at 350 degrees for about 50-60 mins, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

(Click here for source)

Tasty Tuesday: Chocolate & Peanut Butter Acorns

Super-cute recipe from Aubrey this week... these yummy fall treats are easy enough for your little ones to help you!

The Ingredients:

• Mini chocolate chips
• Hershey's Kisses
• Bite-size Nutter Butter cookies

The Directions:

Melt a 1/2-bag of mini chocolate chips in the microwave at 5-second intervals, stirring well each time.

Dip the flat end of a Hershey's Kiss into the melted chocolate & top with a Nutter Butter.

Dip the flat end of a mini chocolate chip into the melted chocolate & place on top of the Nutter Butter to make your acorn's stem.

Repeat until you use all your ingredients to make the cutest fall snack ever!

(Click here for original source)

yard sale success!!

our Anderson MOPS piggy bank!

This past Saturday was the long-awaited yard sale.
We made money! WOOHOO!
It's over! WOOHOO!

On Friday night, Steering Team gathered at New Covenant & unloaded tons of stuff. I'm talking TONS of stuff. And we were worried that we wouldn't have anything to sell. Ha. It took about 3.5 to 4 hours to get everything unloaded, unpacked & sorted. By midnight, we were delirious & a little bit crazy... but the entire lobby of New Covenant was lined with (relatively) neatly sorted piles of merchandise.

On Saturday morning, we dragged our weary selves out of bed &, armed with large Dunkin' coffees, had things set up & ready for business by 7:30am. There was a steady stream of shoppers during the entire morning.... our signs & website postings seem to have done the job quite well!

Although the final numbers aren't yet in, the preliminary total is approximately $700... most definitely worth cleaning out our garages & attics!  And we had the opportunity to meet quite a few new Anderson mamas. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they'll come to MOPS next month :)

Thanks so much for all you ladies who worked the sale, made baked goods, set up Friday night, collected items from friends & family, came to shop, or posted the sale info on your Facebook. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

getting crafty: bird nest necklaces

Our craft during this month's meeting was a huge hit... who doesn't love a cute little bird nest necklace? These would be great gifts for friends, family or even your child's teacher. And how sweet would these be for mother & grandmother gifts? Can't wait to hear if anyone decides to make one at home!

What you need: 

• 2 yards of 24-gauge jewelry wire (you can change the gauge to give your necklace a lighter or heavier look)
• pretty glass beads in whatever color you want (glass works better than plastic because they don't get scratched as easily)
• necklace chain

Instructions: 

1. (Optional) Twirl wire around a pencil or pen to make a corkscrew. This will give the wire more texture. (See pictures below for textured vs. smooth.)
2. Straighten wire & thread desired number of beads onto one end, arranging them as you please. 
3. Wrap wire around your "eggs" until you have formed your "nest"... you will have some leftover wire at this point. It may be helpful to hold the beads between your index finger & thumb as you wrap the wire around. 
4. Now it's time to secure your nest. Thread the end of the wire up through the nest from back to front. Wrap it around the edge of the nest in the spaces between the beads. You may want to wrap it neatly for a structured nest, or you may want a more unstructured "freeform" nest. (See pictures below for examples.)
5. On the back of your nest, use remaining wire to form a small loop to thread your necklace through (remember that your necklace clasp has to fit through it so don't make your loop too small). Secure loop by wrapping wire around its base and/or twisting the wire through an existing coil on the nest. If your loop gets squished while you're securing it, use a pen to help round it back out. 
6. Cut off excess wire & tuck loose end into nest. 
7. Put your lovely little pendant on your necklace & enjoy!

And because I can't resist sharing pretty pictures, here are a few of my favs:

Example of a neatly structured nest (click here for source):

Example of a "freeform" nest with more texture (click here for source):

Example of a nest with a single "egg" (click here for source):

Example of various colored "eggs" (click here for source... this is the original tutorial that inspired this crafty cuteness!):

October meeting recap!

Our October meeting was yesterday, & we had another great turn-out! I'm so excited to see new moms joining us! Welcome, y'all!

Our devotional was incredibly moving & powerful... Jackie shared her story of her childhood & how she eventually came to Christ. I hope to publish a more in-depth recap of her wonderful devotional soon.

And our craft? Was SO STINKIN' CUTE! Tutorial coming soon, I promise!

Our topic for this meeting was "Diving into Love Languages with Kids." As moms of preschoolers, this is such an important thing to consider since these years are the most formative of a child's life & have a huge impact on the adult that they'll become. I don't know about you, but I find the importance of my actions & words both exciting & terrifying... I want so much to be the kind of mama who will help make my little girl become an incredible woman one day!

Patti Rountree from New Covenant Church was our speaker. Her very informative talk was divided into six main points:

1. Speak respectfully to your children & expect (demand) the same from them. Ms Rountree said that she uses an elderly & much-loved neighbor as an example for her children... when they speak harshly to each other, she asks "Would you speak to Mrs. Wilson that way?" This gives them a point of reference of how they should to speak to everyone in their lives. 
2. Be a good listener. Your children will mimic the way you listen. So many times, we want to insert a solution before our child even tells us the problem. Sometimes, it's more important to just listen to what they have to say. 
3. Keep confidences. It's tempting to tell about something hilarious they said or did, but we have to be careful not to embarrass them, especially as our children become older & more self-conscious.
4. Be their biggest fan! If they want to play soccer, let them... & cheer even if they stink. They don't have to be the smartest kid in class for you to be proud of them. Even when they're struggling, they should never have to question your love & support. 
5. Don't squelch their personalities. Teach & discipline them, but remember that each child is an individual & has their own quirks. Ms Rountree gave the example of her own three children... if she gave a list to her oldest, he would immediately begin & neatly check off each item as he completed it. If she gave the same list to her middle child, she would start the list with the best of intentions, but then get distracted... & eventually, she would lose the list. If she gave the list to her youngest child, he would want to discuss it, but not actually do it. 
6. Remind your children that they are made in the image of God. They are beautiful & smart & important no matter what.

Recommended Reading:

• "Proverbs for Parenting," by Decker
• "Five Love Languages for Children," by Chapman & Campbell