My Shtub

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Perfect hair tutorial: Braids

Yesterday I was at the doctors office with my kids, and I heard the person next to me say "ya, we tried everything even smothering in mayo." I seriously wanted to run out of that office screaming, because the only thing you smother in mayo is LICE, and she had a bunch of kids with her! Lice is the grossest and hardest thing to get rid of, and with Rozie's almost waist length hair! I don't even want to think about it.

I researched lice and read that braids are a good style for keep the bugs away. They like free flowing locks. I don't think Rozie has worn her hair down once to school since I read that. I also heard great things about this product, but I havent tried it yet.
Anyways I thought this was a great opportunity to do another hair tutorial.
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Two perfect braids
1. Shoulder length or longer hair
2. Something to part hair with like a pointed comb or even a pencil
3. Detangler spray
5. Good brush like this one

Brush the hair till it is very smooth. Spray with detangler so its slightly damp and tangle free.

Part the hair using the pointed end of a comb or a pencil. Rozie has a natural side part so i part starting in the back of her head. Once you have a perfect part hold one side out of the way with a rubber band.

Gather the hair from the loose side. Use the brush to smooth the hair and gather towards the back. I personally think back low braids take the nerdy out of the two braids look, but placement is your choice.
Once the hair is gathered and smooth ( you can use more detangler to get a smoother gather) start to braid, make sure to do it tight. Finish off with a hair elastic. I once read you should match your elastics to your hair not your outfit. I often use blond colored or clear bands.
I buy my bands at the dollar store and they are one time use.

Now braid the other side trying to match braids as much as possible in placement and length. Elastic off at the same spot as the other braid.

Tips:
Brothers are great for distracting sisters when they are getting their hair done.

So is the Ipad and Yeshiva Boys Choir videos.

I like to add a bow on the side to keep pieces from falling. Voila`perfect school hair!

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Last time I did a hair tutorial a lot of you had questions I could not answer. I decided i would ask my amazing Sheitel macher ( wig stylist) Yehudis who specializes in all hair not just wigs. She studied at Arrojo Cosmetology School and is very talented. Check out her page here. This here is a pic she took of a wig she colored and cut for me, I am sooo happy with it!
Anyways....
Q) What is the best shampoo for Rozie to use since her hair needs more now than the basic kid shampoo?
A) really any shampoo and that says moisturizing is going to be great for kids becasue it will be easier to brush through if its nice and moisturized. A 2in1 shampoo/conditioner is NOT good for anyone's hair because if its strong enough to clean your hair, it will also remove any conditioning. Make sure to use 2 separate products.
I really like the Wella Brilliance shampoo and conditioner. People that I recommended it to told me they really felt a difference in how soft their hair felt after using it.
Q) What is the best detangling product to use? We can not live without it!
A) For detangling, my favorite product is "Its a 10 miracle" leave in product. It works well on all hair types. You just spray on damp hair and comb through. It will also help prevent frizz and define curls/waves
Q) How often should i trim Rozie's long hair?
A) Hair should be trimmed at least every 3 months to keep the ends fresh and healthy. Doing so will also eliminate knotting because the dry ends often cause matting in the hair and make it hard to brush through.
* Remember, if your daughter has wavy/curly hair, NEVER brush it when it's dry, you will just create "fluff" and frizz! And remember its never too early to start using a gently soft hold mousse or smoothing cream to help keep hair more neat and polished looking.
Thank you Yehudis, and don't forget to check out her page here.

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Rozie's dress is from my FAVORITE discount website Zulily! Sign up here!

Monday, May 13, 2013

Big Bow Tutorial!

As Yom Tov is fast approaching I realized that Rozie needed some new bows. I haven't made her a new bow in about a year, and hers were starting to look a bit droopy. This year i decided she needed a big red bow, because in case you haven't heard "The bigger the bow the better the mommy!"

The perfect extra large bigger than life bow tutorial:

To make extra large boutique style bow, that would cost a fortune in the store, you need:

1. Grosgrain ribbon 3" wide about a yard

2. Coordinating ribbon 3/8" wide

3. French clip

4. Thread and needle

5. Hot glue gun

Take a yard of your wide ribbon and fold it in half. Crease the fold and open your ribbon up flat. You should see the crease line in the center.

Take each end and create a figure eight shape. Each end should meet at that center fold crease.

Now this part gets tricky. Hold the middle of the eight and bring the ends in like the picture.

Dont let the middle slip out. You can pin it here if you want to hold it in place.

Sew a simple stitch to hold the pieces together. Pull the thread till the bow gathers up tight in the middle. Tie off your thread and adjust the bow to your liking.

Take your small piece of ribbon and put a dot of hot glue on the top of the bow. Attach the small ribbon and wrap it around to the back. Attach the french clip to the back of the bow with hot glue. Wrap the ribbon through the french clip to hold it on extra tight and glue the ends.

If there are any frayed edges or glue that got away. Take a lighter and seal the edges with the flame. Also carefully use the flame to remove hot glue strings.
Perfect!!!!

I know this tutorial was hard to understand try this video here and see if it helps ( and no you don't need to buy that alligator thing they are selling).
Have a wonderful Yom Tov everyone!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Mazel Tov to Dina Fraenkel our Sparkles and Suspenders GC winner. If you didn't get a chance to enter, no problem check out their page here they have tons of great offers!

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Boxed Creations

The weather has turned cold and rainy. Last year at this time we were beach side. This year my kids are still wearing their coats. What is so hard about it is they had a taste of spring and they want out. When it is too rainy and cold to play outside they become bored and kvetchy. Yesterday was one of those days and I had to think of something fun and it had to be quick.

I grabbed a bunch of boxes, thank you Amazon, and we started building. Not sure what or why but they were happy. In the end we built this odd shaped cool looking box house. Nothing like I've seen on pinterest, but I'm going to assume that those moms do not have the weather playing practical jokes on them.

Rozie cut up the pieces, Dovie glued them on. They were busy for hours!

Its actually pretty cool looking, but now what do I with this box sitting in my dinning room?

Today I hid in it when I needed a parental break. So it is somewhat useful.

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Now onto bigger and better things. I actually did a real project with my kids in honor of Shavuos coming up. I was asked by a very creative and craft lady if I would be interested in contributing to the new and exciting Jcreate magazine.

Check it out you won't be disappointed, so many ideas and crafts!

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One last thing: Don't forget to enter the Giveaway it ends tomorrow.Good Luck!

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Public restroom, fun....

Some of you may know, but for those who don't, Rozie has been potty trained for almost a year now. Yup, I started potty training my girl at 2.5 and we have not looked back. I would like to say it went easy and she was trained before we knew it, but honestly, it took the entire year and it was a hard year. There were many times my husband and I wanted to throw in the towel, but we kept on, and in the end we were so thankful we did. We are officially a diaper free house, and it feels good.
But this is not what I'm here to talk about. I'm here to discuss my new found familiarity with most public restrooms. See, potty training a child means you get to drop everything and run to the nearest public restroom even if it has never been cleaned in its entire life. With my boys it was easy. I used to stand them up on the actual seat, (the bottom of shoes are already gross), but girls are soooooo different.

First the smell, and all around yuckiness really encouraged Rozie's speech. She can now say "ohhh yuck" like a champ, and usually says it backing away and refusing to go. I can't blame her.
Second, when you have a child that is already small for her age at 2.5 there is no way she can sit on the seat alone. Just picture sitting a child the size of a small 18 month old on a public toilet. Usually she would scream and hold onto my neck forcing me to squat allowing my long skirts to become close and comfy with the public restroom floors.

We finally bought one of those keep in your purse fold-able kids size seat that had random princesses that her little tush happily sat upon, until the toilet flushed on it own. Whoever thought of this invention, sucks. Sorry for my words, but its true. Nothing instills fear in a pint size two year like automatic flushing toilets. May they all be removed and never heard from again. For the rest of the summer she used a portable toilet that is sat in the back of my car. Gross yes, but not as gross as having an accident in the Target shopping cart.
My top 5 gross Baltimore public restrooms:
1. Target on Reistertown near the 695. I have complained but they can't get it together. It's so gross.
2. Walmart on Reistertown. Again, so gross.
3. TJ Max on Reistertown. Not becasue they are gross but because someone has to unlock them for you and no one ever wants to. That is a guranteed accident.
4. 7 Mile Market on Reistertown. They are always soooo smelly.
5. Any establishment that has only one stall, because if that bad boy is occupied than I'm using the men's room. I don't care!
So what is my point to all of this? Well today something miraculous happened. I was dragged, actually tricked, into going to Comp-USA* with my husband and the kids today. It's this horrible store where grown nerd men (like my husband, love you dear) giggle and drool over things like Gigabytes and Terabytes (I learned that new word today).
Anyways, as I was knocking my head against a display of CD-Roms Rozie informed me that she needed to go. We quickly found the restroom and to my unexpected surprise it was spotless and smelled normal, actually good. I'm not sure if it was because women rarely use it, or because they were trying to make it up to me for being the most boring store in the world. All I know is it was bliss and there were even hand sanitizers in each stall. Hello dream come true.

Comp-USA* not on Reistertown, you are my number one public restroom that smelled like soft coconuts and a beach waves.
* My husband has just informed after reading this article that it was actually Micro-Center, not Comp-USA. I don't even know what to say to that.
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Potty training tips and tricks:
1. Most children with Down syndrome train on aaverage between the ages of 5-7, so dont pressure your little ones.
2. They need to show some cognitive awareness, Rozie was taking off dirty diapers and bringing them to me.
3. I use a system that I made up: I train pressure free and take a long time to do it. Rozie took a little less than a year to train 100%. ( BTW we still do have accidents and that is 100% normal)
4. Offering rewards is fine but what I think works best is making it a fun stress free thing that you are relaxed about. Children vibe off of you and your stress. Stress= no potty usage
5. Don't listen to what others said, listen to your child and watch for the signs. You don't want to miss that window of opportunity. Everyone told me that she was too young, and kids with Ds train much later, but she was showing the signs of readiness. Her size has been a huge factor in the training, she still can not get on and off without help. That is the only DS related issue we are having.
6. I can not say this enough but it needs to be a relaxed pressure free environment. That means being casual about it when they refuse to go and a casual good job when they do go. It is the last things kids have control over and pressure makes them hold that control longer. Good luck and if you have more questions please ask.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

One Sparkly Giveaway!

I am really excited about this giveaway. Mostly because I am such a sucker for beautiful clothes for my kids. I will buy something gorgeous for my kids without a second thought, but for some reason for myself, I debate and usually end up leaving the item on the shelf. I recently discovered this online store, Sparkles and Suspenders, and fell in love because, and let me quote the company website, "Our name says it all!" Which little girl doesn't love a little extra sparkle in her wardrobe? And suspenders? They speak for themselves!" Don't you love that?

They were kind enough to send Rozie one of their gorgeous dresses by Holt and Lulu called the French Dress for me to review, and we are in heaven. First of all it is so beautifully made and 100% cotton. I am very picky about the fabrics I put on my kids, and cotton wins every time. This dress falls beautifully and the quality shows through. We put a little cardigan with it because we are having a very chilly spring (insert sad face here).

What really sold me on this dress is the huge peter pan collar. Is that not the cutest?

After I was finished with the photo shoot, I asked Rozie if we could take the dress off to save for a special day. She promptly informed me that that would not be happening with a simple "NO!!!!"

Right now Sparkles and Suspenders is having a store wide sale : 25% off entire site. Use coupon code sparkle13 during checkout. Just in time for Yom Tov! Can you see my ordering finger shaking? Hold me back! :)
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Sparkles and Suspenders would also like to give a MyShtub reader a gift certificate to their store!

Pretty exciting, and it's very easy to enter. Just follow the tab below and it will walk you through! Good luck!

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

iphone? Who has the time?

I was at a Lag BaOmer carnival last Sunday talking with my friend and fellow blogger Rivki from Life in the married lane. There were about 400 people at this carnival and neither one of us could take our eyes off our kids.

We spoke in a sideways kind of way that is familiar to many moms. Your eyes are darting around following your kids, while trying to speak about something deep and meaningful with a friend. The inevitable happens and you start using the side of your mouth to talk mafia stye, hoping the person can hear you better. They usually can't. In the end Rivki had to dart off mid conversation as one of her boys was no longer in sight. I wasn't offended, and honestly it took me a second to realize she was gone, because my Rozie was no longer in my sight and I was doing the "where's my kid dance" luckily I spotted her big bow in the crowd. See its not just a fashion statement.

(Dovie and his best friend since he was 2 Menachem Mendel)

This entire dance routine got me thinking about all those articles you read about how we are so tuned into our iPhone and Facebook that we don't even see our kids anymore. I don't know about those moms who have time to Facebook at the park and actually know where their phones are, but for me social media is not even on my mind as my kids play the lets hide from mommy game.

Maybe these iPhone mom's ( and I have an iPhone BTW) have kids that sit nicely on the swings while they text their friends and update their status. I on the other hand have a small child named Rozie that is faster than an eye blink, and oh so quiet about it. She can be gone and in the next town updating her Facebook status all about it, before I can pull my phone from my purse that most likely is lost anyways.

Thursday, April 25, 2013

The CLEAN UP!!! Experiment

One day my kids were doing impersonations of my husband. It was pretty funny, I thought. They were in his bed pulling the covers over their heads whining "just a few more minutes, I'm too tired." I was laughing along with them agreeing that that is their tatty alright. Then my husband asked them to impersonate me, and without missing a beat Dovie said in a strong mommy voice, "Cleanup! Everyone clean up! NOW!!" Honestly, this pinched a bit. My husband wasn't so bothered by his impersonation because it is true . He wakes up around 5:30 most morning for work, and on the weekends he likes to sleep. The kids only see him get up weekend mornings, so this is all they know. But they are with me 24/7, and in their eyes, I'm the clean up sergeant, and truth be told, they are right. I am constantly hounding everyone in our house to pick their junk up and put it away. If I didn't say a thing nobody would lift a finger, husband included. Sorry tired guy, but it's true. I go on and on to my husband all the time about how I need him to pick his stuff up, and he just glazes over. He has been to my boot camp so many times that he is no longer phased, either are my kids.
I decided that I was fed up with ruling my home with an iron duster. I went on clean up strike. I decided for one week I was not going to say one word, not one word to anyone about cleaning up. I would clean up my messes and the messes I usually clean up, but I wasn't cleaning anyone else's mess.
I told nobody about my expirement and waited.

(Yes the kitchen needs a a major overhaul, but it is clean)

(Dining room, before)

( More before kitchen)

Day 1: Not too bad. Husband was doing his best to pick up. Most likely because I gave him the good glazing over talk the night before.
Day 2: The mess started to grow. It was unreal how much stuff can accumulate in one short day.
Day 3: It got bad, and trust me the pics do it no justice. Pans were left on the stove, with open bread bags also left on the stove ( why is the bread bag even on the stove?).

Food and crumbs everywhere, it was like we were feeding the birds.

( Those crumbs were there for TWO DAYS! Gross!)

Toys took over, and the paper accumulation started accumulating within itself.

( The kids were using their books as stepping stones, and I don't even know why their is a huge pile of tablecloths or whatever it is, over there)

I couldn't take it anymore and at the end of day three i cleaned up, and no one noticed.

Conclusion:
Project no clean up, sergeant free mom=fail big time. Could you imagine this place if I actually went the entire week. This was only 3 days! Actually more like two.
So what is the answer, how do keep your life and home tidy with becoming a "cleanup" mommy?

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Recipe ideas for picky little eaters: Guest post from Busy in Brooklyn

I am so excited to have a guest post here on MyShtub from one of my favorite food bloggers Busy in Brooklyn. I discovered Chanie's blog almost a year ago when I did a guest post for her. I love her ideas, especially the kid friendly recipes. I personally do not love to cook and often go to the internet for help. Busy in Brooklyn is always the first blog I check to inspire me to cook at home and not order take out. You can learn more about Chanie here and her adventures with three little ones and one husband. If you aren't impressed yet, Chanie recently graduated from The Center for Kosher Culinary Arts. Mazel Tov!!
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I recently saw Sheva's desperate plea for help with weeknight dinners on Facebook. As a mom of three picky little eaters, I can definitely relate to her predicament. I'm a food blogger, so being creative in the kitchen is what I do, but that doesn't always appeal to my kid's pizza-loving palates. As much as I'd love if they ate chicken curry and sea bass en papillote, it just isn't realistic. Instead, I try to stick to quick & easy basics like mac 'n cheese or tacos. If I'm craving adult-fare, I'll just set aside some of the pasta or ground beef, and whip up something a bit more gourmet for my husband and I (like pasta florentine with poached eggs or spicy sriracha burgers with all the fixings).

For the culinary-challenged, or the harried mom who wants a quick fix meal, here are some super easy ideas that even your picky eaters will love!

MENU IDEAS:

Dairy:

1-2-3 Baked Ziti
Quesadillas
French Toast with Peanut Butter, Bananas & Maple Syrup

Cottage Cheese Pancakes with Fruit & Yogurt

Pareve:

Stuffed Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Gefilte Fish Latkes

Meat:

Meat Pizza

Pulled Chicken Sammies
Spaghetti Sloppy Joes
Chicken Lollipops
Turkey Pinwheels with veggies & dip

RECIPES:

1-2-3 BAKED ZITI

1 package ziti pasta, cooked and drained

1 jar marinara sauce

1 12oz. container cottage cheese

1 8 oz. bag mozzarella cheese, divided

4 oz. cheddar cheese

Mix ziti with marinara, cottage cheese and 1/2 bag mozzarella. Pour mixture into a greased 9×13 pan. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella and cheddar cheese over the top. Bake at 400 degrees until the cheese melts and begins to brown around the edges.

QUESADILLAS

whole wheat wraps
shredded mozzarella cheese
fillings of choice
marinara sauce, for dipping

Heat a nonstick pan and spray with cooking spray. Place tortilla in pan and sprinkle cheese and fillings of choice (olives, tomatoes, peppers, onions etc). Place a second tortilla over the top and press down with a spatula. When the bottom tortilla is browned and toasted, flip over the quesadilla and brown the second side. Cut into wedges and serve with marinara sauce for dipping.

NOTE: You may spread ketchup or marinara over the wraps before putting on the cheese, if desired.

FRENCH TOAST

My kids don't eat eggs, so I sneak in the protein in their french toast!

4 eggs

1 cup milk

1 tsp sugar

pinch of salt
leftover challa or bread

oil, or butter, for frying

Whisk together eggs, milk, sugar and salt. Dip bread into egg mixture on both sides, making sure to fully saturate the bread (you can soak it in the mixture for a minute or so). Fry the bread in an oiled skillet on medium heat until golden on both sides (about 2 minutes per side).

Serve with peanut butter (for added protein!), bananas and maple syrup.

COTTAGE CHEESE PANCAKES

Your kids won't even notice there's cottage cheese in there! You may substitute with ricotta as well.

3 eggs

1 cup milk

1 8 oz. container cottage cheese (drain, if needed)

1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp cinnamon

oil or butter, for frying

Mix all ingredients besides for oil until smooth. Heat up a skillet and grease with butter or oil. Add batter 1 tbsp at a time and fry until golden on both sides. Continue with remaining batter, adding additional oil or butter, as needed.

Serve with fruit & yogurt.

STUFFED ROASTED SWEET POTATOES

Wash potatoes, pat dry and place in a 9×13 pan. Bake at 400 degree until soft and syrupy, about 1 hour.

Fill with vegetarian chili, rice 'n beans, quinoa, cottage cheese, shredded chicken, or any other leftovers!

GEFILTE FISH LATKES

Remove a loaf of gefilte fish from the freezer and thaw on the counter for about 1-2 hours, just enough that you can slice it with a knife, but still mostly frozen.

Heat oil in a frying pan and fry the fish until golden on both sides.

Alternatively, you may oven-fry the latkes by placing them on a well-greased cookie sheet, and spraying generously with cooking spray (or brushing with oil). Bake at 350 degrees until browned.

Serve with Israeli couscous and salad.

MEAT PIZZA

store-bought pizza dough
1 jar pizza sauce
1 pkg ground beef

toppings of choice

Roll out pizza dough and stretch to fit on a greased cookie sheet. Cook the ground beef in a pan, breaking it up and stirring until browned. Top the pizza dough with sauce, ground beef crumbles and toppings of choice. Bake until dough is browned.

PULLED CHICKEN SAMMIES

1 pkg boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/2-1 jar BBQ sauce (I like the Bone Suckin’ Sauce brand)

burger buns

avocado, sliced

tomatoes, sliced

Method:

Put chicken in a pot and cover with water. Bring water to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes. Remove from pot and cool (discard water). Using two forks, pull the chicken apart. Return to pot and add BBQ sauce (start off with about 1/2 of the jar, add more if necessary). Serve warm on burger buns topped with avocado and tomato slices.

Alternatively, you may use store-bought rotisserie chicken instead of making your own.

SPAGHETTI SLOPPY JOES

Just like spaghetti and meatballs, but so much easier!

1 box spaghetti, cooked and drained
1 pkg ground beef (chicken or turkey can also work)
1 jar marinara sauce
additional veggies of choice

Cook the ground beef, breaking it up, until browned. Add marinara sauce and bring to a boil. Toss in spaghetti.

You may saute additional veggies and add to the pot, or used canned beans or corn.

CHICKEN LOLLIPOPS

Instead of serving up plain old "chicken", use only chicken legs and call them LOLLIPOPS. Works every time!

Leave skin on chicken and brush with your favorite BBQ sauce. Bake at 400 degrees until skin is browned and crispy, 45 minutes -1 hours. Remove skin (save for yourself!) and wrap the bones in a napkin. Serve with mashed potatoes and baked beans.