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Tuesday, April 21, 2009

 

Dinner Conversation - Part 2


Last week, I shared with you how we learn about the children's day while gathered around the dinner table. I promised you another conversation idea this week. This week's idea will not only make the meal time more fun, but will also give you an interesting glimpse into your children's developing personalities.

A while back I found a book called Kidchat Too! and fell in love with it. This book is intended to spark conversations by offering fun and unusual questions. We have had some enlightening and funny discussions that also taught me things about my children (and husband) that I never knew. Some of the questions are lighthearted while others are a little deeper. One example that we used is, "What do you think will be the hardest part of being an adult one day?" Another question children enjoy is, "If a soda company asked you to come up with a new flavor of soda, what would it be?"

I also found a great printable list of questions at Listplanit.com. At a restaurant recently, I asked one of the questions from the Listplanit.com list and the children had so much fun with it that they asked if I had anymore questions!

Since this week I am discussing Spring, I should mention that this dinner conversation idea can be even better by pulling your patio set out of storage taking dinner outside. Have fun!


Whimsical conversation starters work for our family and you can find more Works for Me Wednesday tips at We Are That Family.

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# posted by Heather@justdoingmybest @ Tuesday, April 21, 2009 3 Comments
 

Homemaking by the Season - Home Maintenance

If you are anything like me, home maintenance is one of the more mundane, albeit necessary tasks of keeping a home. However, for few hours of work, money will be saved for weeks and months to come.

First, there are several good websites that feature checklists of the chores we should focus on this spring. A great place to start is Bob Vila's Home Maintenance Checklist. Among many other suggestions, he mentions changing filters. We will soon be turning on the A/C units and considering they are usually the most expensive drain on our electric bill, having these operating at maximum efficiency will save us money. You may also want to take a peek at the unit outside and make sure it is clear of grass clippings and lawn debris. If the air flow is restricted by leaves and grass clippings, the unit will be less effective. Lastly, check your unit to see if it functions as you expect, before you actually need it. You will get repair service much quicker in the spring than you will on the first hot summer day when many people are turning on their units for the first time.

Second, if you have never planted a garden before, this is the year to start. As you know, food prices have been climbing and the job market is still unsteady. Free food growing in your backyard will make your grocery budget stretch even further. It is not too late to start, though in some parts of the country, it is certainly time to be quick with your garden plans. Phoebe at Cents to Get Debt Free loves gardening and blogs her progress, so if you need some inspiration, be sure to check out her site. Even if you think you do not have room for a garden, square foot gardening provides efficient use of a small space and container gardening requires even less space.

A quick frugal tip if you are wanting to start a garden: The smaller family owned nurseries are going to be much cheaper than the big box garden stores. In our area, we have several that are so small that the business is conducted from a greenhouse on the family's property. I do not even recall seeing advertisements or even large business signs for this type of nursery, but they have more variety and are probably half the price of the larger businesses. These businesses depend mainly on word of mouth suggestions and the locals who just drive by. If you are new to this hobby, consider asking friends and family where they buy their plants.

Lastly, we are probably all familiar with the fact that spring cleaning should be done. Rather than provide a checklist of the necessary chores, I just had to show you how to make it more fun. I found a CD at Amazon called Lifestyles: Music for Spring Cleaning. I had to laugh because it is certainly not the type of music that would get me through a day of tough cleaning, but maybe someone would enjoy it. It's beautiful music though. If this is not your style of music to clean to, pick out a selection of your favorite songs as well as a reward for yourself to enjoy when you are finished, and see if that helps you get through these necessary chores.

Come back tomorrow for a more relaxing and amusing way to enjoy the warm Spring weather.

This post is linked to these great sites:
Talk About Tuesday at The Lazy Organizer
Your Life, Your Blog at Real Life
I am Blissfully Domestic at Blissfully Domestic

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# posted by Heather@justdoingmybest @ Tuesday, April 21, 2009 3 Comments

Monday, April 20, 2009

 

Lemon Cheese Bars



Lemon Cheese Bars are a great spring dessert. They are a little lighter than the heavier desserts we usually associate with winter and these are not overly lemon flavored, which makes them perfect for those who do not typically like lemon desserts.


Lemon Cheese Bars

1 box yellow cake mix, the ones with pudding in the mix are preferable
1 8 ounce package softened cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 eggs, used separately
1/3 cup oil

Preheat oven to 350. Mix dry cake mix with 1 egg and 1/3 cup oil until crumbly. Reserve 1 cup and pat remaining mixture lightly in an ungreased 13x9 pan. Bake 15 minutes. Beat cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and 1 egg until smooth. Spread over baked layer and sprinkle reserved crumb mixture over the top. Bake 15 minutes. Allow to cool and cut into bars.

You will find other recipes at the following sites:
Mouthwatering Mondays by Southern Fairytale
Kitchen Tip Tuesdays by Tammy's Recipes
Tempt My Tummy at Blessed With Grace
Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam
Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap at Grocery Cart Challenge

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# posted by Heather@justdoingmybest @ Monday, April 20, 2009 9 Comments

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