Rainy Day Fun

The weather last week was up and down, and we didn’t know what would happen from one day to the next.  Some days were beautiful and sunny, and the kids ran a played outdoors all day until I made them come in to get ready for the evening services. Other days, though, the rain drummed continually on the roof, forcing us all to stay indoors (six people living in an RV can really get crowded quickly under those circumstances)! 

The kids decided to get out the play-dough but found that the vast majority of the dough was rock-hard.  Great.  That meant that the remaining container had the equivalent size and value of the Hope Diamond, and whoever possessed the dough was, in effect, the reigning monarch – more like the not-so-benevolent dictator.  After many distressed cries and much whining, I decided that one blob of play-dough was not enough for all of my munchkins.  In fact, it was going to be a serious detriment to their well-being if they continued to fight over it.

So, I did the great American mom thing, and began looking for play-dough recipes online.  I have made play-dough before, in a pot on the stove, and while the end result was great, the whole process was messy and not so fun.  I ran across this recipe for Fruity Play-dough by my good friend, Laine. You can find the whole process here.

Fruity Play Dough

1 cup plus 1 tbsp.  all-purpose flour
1 package Kool-Aid (any flavor)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup salt
2/3-3/4  cup boiling water
Mix all dry ingredients in bowl and add oil. Pour boiling water into flour mixture and mix thoroughly. (You may need to add a few more spoonfuls of flour to get it to the right consistency.) After it has cooled a little, knead it with your hands until smooth. Store in an air tight container and keep in the refrigerator. (The play dough should last a few months.)

Let me say here, that this is an awesome recipe!  It smells so yummy because of the secret ingredient (Kool-aid) which also colors the dough, eliminating the need for messy food coloring experiments.  It takes less than five minutes to whip up a batch ( I think I made eight batches in about thirty minutes).  I also like that it does not make a batch of dough the approximate size of an elephant.  It is much smaller, more manageable batches.  Love that!  I made the first batch, and realized that it was too large to fit in the play-dough containers that we already had.  So, I halved the next batch, all but the Kool-aid packet, and it was perfect.  It fit perfectly in the play-dough containers, and I was one happy mama!  This also made the colors more vibrant, since it was effectively twice the coloring.

The kids were so excited – they kept sniffing the dough and laughing and exclaiming over the different scents.  And… I got the awesome mama award.  Hugs all around, and lots of smiles.  And a play-dough pizza.

I think that may be anchovies, but I am not sure…

What a great way to spend a rainy day!

Keeping Busy

Things around our house have been pretty normal – school, church, grocery shopping, laundry, repeat...  We have had some crazy weather lately though.  Last week, it was 70 degrees outside,  and then it rained several days, until I thought we would have to build a boat to get to the mailbox.  The ground was so saturated, that the water was standing in deep puddles everywhere.  Our back yard looked like a pond!  Needless to say, I had to keep the kids inside when it was raining.  Why is it that they seem to have so much energy when they have to stay inside?

This weekend, the temperature dropped rapidly, with a cold front erasing all memories of the 70 degree days we had just had.  We have had days of freezing rain, so we all huddle inside and hope that the weather breaks soon.  I had to go out to run errands a few times during the bad weather, and the roads were not very good.  I was glad I only had to go a few blocks to the store!  The weight of the ice on the trees and power lines was of some concern to us.  If it gets too heavy, there can be power outages.  That would not be good, since everything we have runs on electric.  The lights did flicker a bit last night, but thank the Lord, the power stayed on.  I am hoping it will warm up enough to remove the ice from the lines. 

Our Kroger is under reconstruction and remodeling, so it is always a nightmare to go in there, but add all the locals who are trying to stock up before the storm, and you have a real mess.  No one is able to find what they are looking for, due to the shifting around to accommodate the remodel.  It literally changes daily.  I am looking forward to the completion of this project.

Due to the severity of the weather, the local schools closed for a few days, and all my piano lessons were canceled.  So… not much to do here but more housework.  I am kind of glad for a bit of a breather, since we will be having revival services next week at our church.  Paul is preaching, and it is always fun to hold a meeting in our home church.  We have several cottage prayer meetings scheduled for this week, although I missed the first one due to a sick child.  Josiah has had a pretty bad earache for two days, and spent most of the day in bed yesterday.  He is feeling somewhat better today, so I hope it will mend quickly.  There is only so much you can do for an earache.

In spite of the bad weather and sickness, though, we have all had a good week.  Sometimes dreary weather makes for pessimistic attitudes, but not this week, I am happy to say.  :)  Inside our house, it is warm and dry, and I think I will curl up with a cup of hot peppermint tea and a good book if I get half a chance!