Category Archives: {inspired}

{inspired} The Jesus Storybook Bible

Our family has been loving The Jesus Storybook Bible for the last month. This book was written for children ages four and up, but I will openly admit that it is impacting my own faith. The book makes its way through many well-known Bible stories, but it’s not like any other children’s Bible collection I’ve ever read.  The book beautifully tells each story and then explains how the story points to Jesus. It is profound and thought-provoking while evoking a feeling of intimacy and love from a Creator who knew exactly what he was doing to save the people he loves so dearly. All this while writing on a level that can be comprehended by a four-year-old. Amazing.

2014-04-13 10.38.58 pm

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{inspired} To Share Life on Instagram

When it comes to social media, I’m a little wishy-washy about what I like and what I don’t. I’ve technically been on Twitter for a couple years since I had my bake shop and felt like it might be fun for my business. Now I’m on as The Mango Memoirs, but I don’t do a whole lot. It’s just too much information for me. I am a fan of Facebook, though I’m spending less time on it than I used to, which is probably best. There is one social media app, though, that I’m absolutely sticking with. It’s Instagram.

2014-04-09 10.57.03 pmrockin it two weeks ago

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{inspired} by sweet dreams

God is continually reminding me that he has not only called me or Pete to this journey of life in Africa. He has so clearly created our sweet babies to be a part of that plan in an incredible way. Another example of His plan for the four of us happened recently. I am constantly in awe of God’s amazing plan. How are we so blessed to be on this path?

 

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{inspired} chalkboard art

Chalkboards are sooo popular right now, and I am all over that trend. Maybe part of it is the teacher in me. I’ve always loved them. I have a couple little chalkboards around the house that I would love to jazz up with some artsiness. I’m not great at coming up with such ideas on my own, though, so I recently took a stroll through Pinterest for ideas. I came up with one piece of inspiration, which led me to draw the picture below on a board in my kitchen. The vintage board was found by my grandma, who is pretty amazing when it comes to garage sales.

 joyinspired by this print

 

Here are a few of the other lovelies I found on Pinterest that I thought were quite inspiring.

creativity is messy quote_thumb visit the source & download it for free

fa2b5a2dcef6f3c3e6b17f13ca324ee9found at this Etsy shop

Rejoicevisit the source & download it for free

dfc279e908ff123fec9ade88626a366bfound at this Etsy shop

If you want to try making your own chalkboard printable, I found this blog post with a tutorial on how to do is using PicMonkey. I haven’t actually tried it yet, so I can’t say how it all works, though I have used Pickmonkey many times. Let me know if you try it out!

Enjoy!


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{inspired} Soapy Bathtub Paint

 

Soapy Bathtub Paint // The Mango Memoirs

This winter has been crazy cold, and that’s saying a lot coming from northern Minnesota. I’m doing my best to avoid complaining about it since we may only have a couple winters left with any snow at all. The hard part, though, is that it’s so cold we can’t really play outside. Because of that, I’m trying to get better about finding indoor activities, especially for Ella.

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In the last two weeks, we’ve come up with a few things that Ella has been super excited about. She’s gone a bit crazy over baths ever since I introduced color to the picture. She now begs to play in the water every afternoon during Sam’s nap, which seems a whole lot more like a treat at that hour of the day. I also don’t feel like we have to rush through it to get ready for bed. I can clean the bathroom or catch up on emails while she splashes. I’ve even taken the time to paint my toes after soaking my feet in the warm water. She thinks this is hilarious, but I’ve convinced her a couple times to give me a little ‘mermaid’ foot massage. (Seriously, parents, we just have to get creative with our self-pampering time!)

So yes, we’ve introduced a little mermaid bath time. Simplest thing ever. She puts on her swimsuit, which she insists is a must for a mermaid, and carefully chooses a color. The colors come from a little box of food coloring I have. Just the typical liquid drops of coloring, the same ones I grew up dripping into vinegar water for Easter eggs and powdered sugar frosting for Christmas cookies. Nope, it doesn’t stain a thing. It leaves absolutely no trace on skin or the bathtub after we drain the water. I put 5-8 drops into the tub once it’s filled and Ella happily stirs it with her ‘mermaid tale.’ Voila! Beautifully colored mermaid water. What a treat!

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The other thing we tried last week was bathtub paint. Simple simple simple. Here’s what you need:

  • 1/2 cup baby shampoo or baby wash
  • 1-2 tablespoons corn starch
  • liquid food color
  • small bowl for mixing
  • muffin tin or other container for paints
  • paint brush

Mix the shampoo with the corn starch in a small bowl. The more corn starch you add, the thicker the paint will get. Pour the mixture evenly into the cups of a muffin tin or into small containers. We used a little muffin pan, which worked well for setting on the edge of the tub. Put 1-2 drops of food color in each and stir with the paint brush or your finger.

That’s it! Ella loved being an ‘artist mermaid’ and painting the walls of the bathtub. The paint isn’t very thick. Since it’s mostly made up of soap, it can be used to wash during the bath or to clean the tub. It all comes off beautifully with a little water.

Do your kids have bath time games or activities they love? Do you? I’d love to hear them! The more ideas we have, the merrier!


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{inspired} Oatmeal Alphabet Search

oatmeal alphabet search - perfect indoor activity for preschoolers!

We’re more than used to cold weather in northern Minnesota, but what we’ve been experiencing the last few weeks has been pretty amazing. Since we’ve already had a couple canceled school days due to the cold this month, I wanted to think of something new and fun to keep Ella busy. I scanned the shelves of the pantry, hoping something would catch my eye. There I discovered two big packages of oatmeal. Perfect! I knew exactly what I would make.

oatmeal alphabet search - perfect indoor activity for preschoolers!

I washed a big, shallow container from our storage room and dropped in a bunch of plastic letters.

oatmeal alphabet search - perfect indoor activity for preschoolers!

Just before revealing the bin to Ella, I made a list of the letters on a piece of card stock. One by one, Ella looked for the letters, excitedly showing off each as she pulled them out of the oats. She spent at least an hour with her oatmeal box while I cleaned and folded laundry. Great for both of us. We may be pulling it out again tomorrow. It looks like the schools around us have already canceled classes for tomorrow. Maybe we’ll be next!

oatmeal alphabet search - perfect indoor activity for preschoolers!

Are you experiencing unique, winter weather where you are? What are you doing to stay warm or to keep your kids busy indoors? I’m definitely looking for ideas!


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