Works for me Wednesday: Mom, I'm Bored Edition!

I don't have kids (hence the title of my blog), but I do teach preschool, so I thought I would hop right in on this week's Works for Me Wednesday: Mom, I'm Bored! Edition.

How would you like an activity for your kiddos that is inexpensive, educational, AND fun? Look no further than your hubby's can of shaving cream! Squirt a nice-sized mound on the table in front of your little one and watch them get to work! You can use this as purely a sensory activity for the younger ones, letting them squish & squash to their hearts content (with supervision, of course)! Give them toy cars to drive through it or cookie cutters to make patterns/designs in the foam.

For older kids, you can have them draw pictures, practice writing their name, letters, numbers or word wall words. When I taught kindergarten, I would do this activity on one of the last days of school every year (I forgot to do it in preschool this year) and the kids would rave about it the rest of the day! They would each take turns (at their table) choosing word wall words or classmates' names for the other kids at the table to write.

And best of all, as the kids are playing, the foam dissolves into nothingness and leaves your tables sparkling clean! That works for me!

Works for me Wednesday: V-day style!

Today was my Valentine's Day party for my four-year-olds. Tomorrow is the party for the 3s. I have a lot of food allergies in the classroom, which makes providing treats suitable for everyone in the class a bit challenging. My healthy and kid-friendly solution? Fruit kebabs! I took wooden skewers (2 per child, but I don't think they'll really eat that much) & loaded them with grapes, strawberries, fresh pineapple and mandarin oranges! The kids think they're tons of fun & they don't get soggy like a fruit salad would! Plus, they're easier to serve than a fruit tray! It's healthy, fun & it WORKS FOR ME!

Works for Me Wednesday: Kitchen Tip!

I haven't posted a WFMW in a while, so I thought today would be a good time to get back into the swing of things!

I was recently preparing a veggie tray for a friend's bridal shower. I quickly became frustrated with the cauliflower and broccoli bits being strewn all over my kitchen counter until I thought of a great (but almost-too-simple) solution! I simply laid my cutting board down inside my sink and cut on it as usual! No more veggie bits all over my countertops! This also works great for super-juicy fruits (or veggies) like tomatoes, watermelon and pineapple! It's so simple, but it Works For Me!

Works for Me Wednesday - make some $$$

This week, I thought I would write a bit about the way that I make a bit of extra spending cash around here. Over the course of the past year, I have so nerdily kept track (in an excel spreadsheet, no less) and discovered that I made approximately $600+ simply by participating in a few online research & survey sites. Some of them give you points for referrals, reading emails, answering trivia questions, filling out surveys, shopping online, testing products, or simply by completing free offers. My rewards have come in various forms, as well! In that $600 total, prizes have come in the form of cash (checks), restaurant & retail gift cards and, my newest addition, an Apple ipod shuffle!!! I won't bore you with the referral links here, but you will see that I have several of them set as widgets in my right-hand menu. Please comment with any questions you have and I'll be sure to do my best in answering them! I know it isn't a ton, but every little bit helps & it surely WORKS FOR ME!

My favorites:
MySurvey
Treasure Trooper
Big Crumbs
MyPoints
Memolink

PS - click on the WFMW icon to find a whole list of tips, tricks & ideas that work for others!

Works for Me Wednesday - backwards!

Ooh - my second post for today! I wanted to write my American Idol update before it was too late, but I also want to get in on the backwards Works-for-Me-Wednesday...I'm not really sure what to ask for advice on today, so I am wondering if you could just leave me something inspirational for my day (and I promise to pay it forward!) - it could be an internet hug, a scripture verse, a favorite quote, or just something to brighten my day! Thanks for reading my blog & I hope you'll come back soon!

Works for Me Wednesday

I've never done a WFMW before, so I thought I might give it a shot. In his quest to lose 20lbs by summer, I was on G's case a little bit about keeping track of what he's eating...it isn't so much that he eats JUNK (because honestly, I make the meals, so I know that's not true & I don't really buy junky snack foods either), but more so that he doesn't really think about what he's putting in his mouth & he doesn't know how bad some foods actually are for you! He stumbled across this website, called FitDay, which helps both of us keep track of our caloric & fat intakes & simultaneously compare them with our exercise & an approximation of what our bodies burn naturally according to our metabolisms. You can even input your weight goal & a goal date & it will tell you how much you need to lose per week in order to meet that goal. It's pretty awesome, totally free & IT WORKS FOR ME (us!)!