Fabric Christmas wrapping

For the past couple of years the girls' 4-H club has collected donations to send Christmas stockings to soldiers serving in Iraq. My girls' contribution to the project has been to put their sewing skills to work. They make Christmas fabric bags that can be filled with items from the A Soldier's Wish List website.

The bags are 10" x 12" and the straight lines make them much easier to sew than a traditional stocking shape. They hold more too.

The kids sewed a ribbon into the seam that ties around the top to close the bag once it's filled.

The kids got a chance to see my friend Meg's serger in action with this project, which made the couple of bags sewn on it look professionally done.

The girls and their friends made a dozen gift bags in about an hour. It's an easy sewing project that everyone enjoys.

Of course, there's lots of chatter when you get a bunch of girls together to sew and you can see from the video that G. was quite impressed with the serger.



If you're interested in sending a package to soldiers serving overseas this Christmas, check out the ASWL's site explaining how to do it.

In the next couple of days the girls and I plan to get outside for some low-key exercise to help me get back in to shape -- and get back on topic about enjoying the outdoors with kids.

OT: Cut-out cookie fun

For several years during the Christmas season (before children) I made cut-out cookies and really enjoyed it. When the girls came along, life became too crazy to keep that tradition going.

But then I had a brainstorm when the girls were toddlers -- make cut-out cookies for Halloween and Valentine's Day when life was a little less chaotic and the social calendar wasn't so crazy. Now these two holidays rarely pass without the girls and I making a few batches of cut-outs to decorate. It's been a great family tradition for us.

And since I'm still not up to climbing mountains yet and haven't done a whole lot outdoors lately (I'm still working on getting back in shape after my surgery) I thought I'd share my 'learnings' about making cut-out cookies for those parents who want to make them for the holiday season.

Make the dough ahead of time. It can take an hour or more just to make so I prefer to do this with the girls a day or two ahead of time. Plus, rolling out *cold* dough really is easier and makes a better cookie. Frozen cookies are easier to decorate for little hands, especially if you decide decorating (not rolling and cutting) is the way to go with your toddler/preschooler. Plus, unfrosted cookies last a month or more in the freezer if packaged well (in a freezer ziplock baggie and carefully stacked so they don't break). Just be sure cookies are completely cooled before packaging up for the freezer. See the cookie and frosting recipe I use - and like - below.

I've never been very good at decorating cookies but the girls enjoy mixing and matching various sprinkle and frosting options.

"Look mom, I'm a pumpkin head!" She's 11 and I'm amused she still thinks that's funny.

Sugar Cookies
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour

Mix butter and shortening together then add sugar and baking powder. Blend until well-combined. Then add egg and vanilla and mix well. Add one cup of flour at a time. Make dough into oval shape, cover in plastic wrap and put in refrigerator for at least 3 hours (I usually keep in overnight).

Roll out dough on a floured surface (kids tend to put too much flour, a tablespoon is usually enough) and be careful the rolled-out dough is not too thin (1/4" works well for us).

Bake cookies on an un-greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees (cooler than most recipes but I've found this temp works better) for about 5-6 minutes (depending on cookie thickness).

Cookies are done when the edges start to lightly brown (which doesn't always look done but it likely is so experiment with one pan at a time at first).

Let the cookies sit in the pan for about 2 minutes after removing from the oven. This will help ensure the cookies don't break before moving them to the cooling racks. I have 6 cookie sheets to keep the cookie cutting and baking moving along for the kids.


Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla (we like orange too) extract
1 Tablespoon milk

Mix everything together until well combined. Separate into small bowls and then add food coloring.

Tracing leaves in chalk

G. doesn't think she draws well but what she really means is that she has trouble illustrating to makes her drawings appear the way that she thinks they should.

She is however a creative kid in working out how she wants to make things look 'right.'

Take for instance chalk drawing on Grandpa's driveway.

She collected different shaped leaves and outlined them with chalk then colored them and was pleased with herself and the results.

I thought it was a good idea and wanted to share it in case any other parents were faced with a frustrated driveway artist.

Questions to ponder at the hockey game

L. and I went to the Pirates game Sunday night (they won!). It was our first for the season and we were happy to see the team again.

L. had a few questions during the game...

Why does the indoor karting place use zambonis to race this year instead of go-karts?

Why does #2 (Weinrich) wear a yellow face mask when everyone else wears a clear one?

Is it fun to coach the Pirates with your brother?

L.'s commentary about the game recorded in the car on the way home.



Videos from the game

Throwing fall leaves never get old

This morning we went hiking on the trails at Poland Spring's Preservation Park.

It was a glorious fall day and the leaves were colorful and plentiful both on the trees and the ground.

When the girls were little they loved throwing leaves around.

This pic was taken during a hike at Mt. Agamenticus in fall of 2003 when the girls were 6 and 7 years old.

Little has changed since then - except that they prompt me to take photos of them doing it.

The girls are now almost 10 and 11 years old.

Well, I guess there are a couple of other differences...

1. They have bigger hands and therefore can collect more leaves to throw.

2. They must review each shot I take on the camera to make sure it is exactly 'right.'

3. A Webkinz must be involved in at least one photo of flying leaves.

Pet crafts to keep the girls busy

It's been a slow week for the Almeida kids. And although I'm feeling better than I have been since my surgery, I'm still not up to climbing any mountains this week.

The girls, who are used to being busy and physically active, have been a little off-kilter with our quieter schedule these past couple of weeks and driving me a little crazy.

If they bathe the cats or give them any more attention, those cats are going to start biting and scratching their eyes out (a couple of times this past week I've had similar thoughts). Their latest antics for 'training' the cats was to teach them to sit still while being pushed around the house in the doll carriage.

I realized after this 'activity' it was time to give them a more structured project to work on so the cats could have a break from their loving attention.

Dani, a children's librarian at Baxter Library, gave us an idea for a craft project to make for the library's craft fair fundraiser in December -- pet-oriented toys and crafts.

The girls loved the idea and I thought it a perfect project to keep them busy for a couple of days.

They have had some experience sewing cat mats with their 4-H club and decided to make a modified version of the pattern they had.

G. wanted to make 'kitty beds' out of fleece and quilt batting so they were "soft and fluffy." L. wanted to make some mats like she'd seen at the pet store.

We opted to make all the mats 24" x 18" to get as many as we could from the fabric we already had at home.

G. sewed the batting for her mats right into to the fleece so that it wouldn't bunch up during repeated washings.

The fleece options readily available were diverse patterns but G. was sure there was a football fan cat owner who would like her Patriots' themed kitty bed.

Making the mats L. wanted required my help to cut and iron the border material into a long strip (like homemade bias tape) for her to pin and sew to the fleece.

And as she explained to the librarians when she brought her mats to them yesterday, she used the brown fleece for her cat mats instead of the original monkey costume she had planned to make for Halloween (another year, another crisis on deciding what to wear).

The cats were happy to walk around the house undeterred for a few hours and Dulce helped to confirm that making the mats out of fleece was a good idea.

Next week we have plans to go hiking and I hope until then this sewing project keeps them happy and gives the cats -- and mom -- a little more down-time.

Parachute never gets old

It doesn't matter how old the kids are, there's something about playing with a parachute that makes everyone laugh.

At the girls' 4-H meeting yesterday there were a lot of newbies and the age range was a little tricky to plan for, which was from 5 to 15 years old.

An icebreaker activity seemed important to get the kids acquainted and comfortable with one another before the business portion of the meeting - which was the first of the new 4-H year - so we broke out the parachute.

Everyone - including the teens - enjoyed the games.

If you're interested in buying a parachute, the prices aren't too bad. We've had ours since the girls were preschoolers and it's been well-used and has stood up well over time. And I really like the fact that the girls still remember playing games with it when they were younger.

It's one of those timeless toys that I'm glad I still have around the house.

Lupus and his cast

In case you were wondering how Lupus the foster kitty walks around the house with his leg cast, here's your answer.

Mom needs down time?

I had some minor surgery last week and I've been slow moving since then, much to the chagrin of the children. I guess when your mom goes from overdrive to barely standing, it takes some getting used to.

But this past week was still more eventful than I would have liked it to have been.

L. couldn't miss her beloved field hockey so we made sure she got to her game on Sunday.

And we were scheduled to pick up the first of two installments of the pig raffle meat in Gardiner. The smoked parts (bacon and ham) aren't due for another couple of weeks. That's good news as these boxes filled both of our freezers.

The roast I made in the crock pot last night was very tasty so everyone is getting used to the idea of having met the pig at the fair and appreciating his sacrifice...


Then Fino and the girls decided to foster a kitten who was abandoned with a broken leg and he showed up at our house this week. I've been assured by the girls that they understand we are just helping him heal and taking care of his leg before he's adopted -- that we aren't keeping him.

I have a feeling that they agreed so they could work out a strategy to keep the little guy they are calling Lupus.

For what was supposed to be an uneventful few days, there was certainly plenty of action going on at our house. I guess down time is overrated? I wouldn't know.

The pig

We have a note on our refrigerator today that I can't say I ever expected to see there.

Now if you read it quickly you might have thought we are picking up a live pig.

Nope.

We were the winners of the 4-H Pig Raffle at the Cumberland County fair last week.

The pig was alive at the fairgrounds but he is not alive anymore.

That's the raffle -- a pig raised by a local 4-Her billed as "freezer-ready."

Meaning, the pig is sent to a butcher at the end of the fair and cut to order and frozen for pick up for the lucky winners.

We're still in shock we won this. It is a source of entertainment with our urban friends and family that the girls sell raffle tickets for this every year (it's a 4-H fund-raiser). This year we bought the remaining six tickets the girls didn't sell to support the program.

Never did we EVER think we'd win the pig!

So when we did, the first thing I asked was how the whole thing worked. Wendy Gallagher - the 4-H volunteer who coordinated the raffle this year - told me not to worry, just call West Gardiner Beef and they'll guide me through it.

Through what?

How I wanted the pig cut.

I started to say holy cow but just laughed instead. I didn't know what to say.

So I called West Gardiner Beef this week and told the friendly woman on the other end I had absolutely no idea what to do.

She walked me through the various parts of the pig (a view of the parts discussed) and what type of cut I wanted and what I wanted smoked versus fresh.

All those market pig farmers can call me names but boy, that was a strange and disturbing conversation for me. Yes I eat meat -- and appreciate the fact that this animal was grain-fed -- but no, I don't want to have met the animal prior to eating him/her. I'm a hypocrite who needs some distance from her meat supply.

The part of the conversation that really got to me was the head (offered whole), heart, feet and tongue parts. Did I want them?

Ahh, no thank you.

On Monday we pick up the fresh cuts, which I'm told will completely fill 2 small, empty freezers (the refrigerator/freezer combo type) so we have some phone calls to make to family and friends for help storing the meat.

And that doesn't count the smoked cuts (bacon and ham), which won't be ready for a few more weeks, that we need to also find freezer space for.

Of course the news of our win got around quickly in the 4-H circle. My favorite email about our winning from a 4-H friend was this one:

"I helped move the pig last night from his midway home to the trailer. I checked out those nice hams!"

One of our urban family members said:

"Congratulations!!! Winning a pig may be a once in a lifetime event."

Of course you can likely guess the girls' reaction to the raffle.

Can we save him?

That wasn't an option so they're pretending like they never met the pig at the fairgrounds. Nothing wrong with denial since I'm doing the same thing.

And we're making plans to share our bounty with the girls' 4-H club end of the fair season party.

Holy pig!

Hiking with little ones

I've received a few emails recently asking for suggestions on hikes I thought were good for younger kids. During the summer L. decided to make a map of the trails she's hiked in Maine for a 4-H project and I'm not sure if some people saw L.'s project at the Cumberland Fair this past week that prompted the emails or if it's just that time of year when people want to be outside with their kids to enjoy the fall.

A screen snap of L.'s map project

Either way, I decided to ask the kids about trails they liked when they were little. I combined their suggestions with mine to come up with this list (which is in no particular order).

Fore River Trail in Portland (off Hobart Street)
It's only a mile with plenty of boardwalks to keep little ones laughing about all the noise they can make running on them.

The girls picked tons of dandelions on this trail and found a treasured seagull feather I believe is still hanging around our house somewhere.

Josephine Newman Sanctuary in Georgetown
There are short loop trails that are flat and easy to navigate with plenty of birds around to listen to and spot.

The Arboretum in Augusta
A little longer hike than some of our other recommendations but the flowers and plants along the way keep the trail interesting. The hosta garden is one of L.'s all-time favorite places.

Biddeford Pool
This is a short, easy hike with plenty of 'treasures' to collect on the rocky shore.

These were the days when seaweed was really interesting and snuck in to the backpack to bring home without realizing how bad it would smell later.


Mackworth Island in Falmouth
This trail had some serious storm damage earlier this spring but it's open now. It's a little over a mile looping trail that's flat and great for strollers and most kids we know have loved the fairy house village and pet cemetery there.
8-year-old G.'s experience on this trip.6-year-old L.'s experience.

Wolfe's Neck Woods in Freeport
The trails at the state park are well-marked and lots of kiosks explaining the wildlife and plants in the area make the trails an educational experience. We also found the rangers to be really helpful in answering the kids' questions when we've visited the park.
7-year old G. describes her experience on this trail.

Recognizing some of the words on the kiosks for G. when she was learning to read was a big deal for her -- and I was thrilled she wanted to practice reading.

Wells Reserve at Laudholm Farm in Wells
There are plenty of boardwalks for the kids (mine love the sound of running on boardwalks) to enjoy and beach to explore on the looping trails around the farm.
7-year old G. describes experience on this trail.6-year old L. describes her experience.

Douglas Mountain in Sebago
This 1/4 mile trail is a good "1st mountain climb" experience for little ones. It's a steep climb but it's short and the tower at the top offers an extra incentive for kids to climb to the top.

During our first trip up the mountain, L. insisted on eating her snack with Bunny on the top of the tower.

Jockey Cap in Fryeburg
This is another short hike up a slightly less steep trail than Douglas Mountain but offers great views and an interesting mountain map at the top my kids really liked. But note: parents should hold kids hands at the top because there is a steep drop-off at the top.
7-year old G. describes her experience on trail5-year old L. describes her experience

The kids really liked the small caves on the trail.

Mount Agamenticus in York
These trails are fun because you can start at the top of the mountain to explore the trails, one of which has an old ski lift that my kids think is cool. You can also start at the bottom of the mountain and hike to the top as well if your kids are a little older and want the challenge of hiking a bigger mountain.
7-year-old G.'s experience on this trail.6-year-old L.'s experience.

G., just learning to read had read a sign near this tree suggesting visitors hug it. Since she was so happy to have read the sign, she decided to convince her sister to hug it with her.

Bradbury Mountain State Park in Pownal
It's a short hike to the top of Bradbury Mountain and one my kids enjoyed doing while there was still snow on the ground. There are plenty of looping trails for any length adventure your kids are up to trying.
7-year-old G.'s experience on this trail.6-year-old L.'s experience.

I know this is just the tip of the iceberg for easy hiking trails for little ones in Maine. If you have a suggestion, leave a comment below to share it.

You can also write a short review of a trail your family enjoyed and we'll link it up in our hiking trails database!

Write a hiking review