We did it!  We made our own handmade paper.  Not the ideal kind for letters or doing your homework on, but it turned out to be a pretty cool experiment.  The end result resembled that same soft cardboard paper that eggs come in at the grocery stores.  It was almost identical to that.  In fact we probably could have pressed it into a shape at some point in the drying stage and it would have stayed in that shape.  Hmmmm.....that actually sounds like a good idea!  I wish I would have thought of that sooner.  Well, nonetheless this was a great lesson for young children in how paper is recycled, which is what this whole project was about.  As for our tree of choice to plant in honor of Earth Day..... 

We chose an apricot tree!   It's a cute little four foot tall tree, and I wish that I had some pictures to share of us planting our tree, but two out of four in this household decided they want to keep the tree in our patio.  Well, more like two out of three since our toddler has no say in where the tree goes.  Originally we were going to plant it in Nana's backyard (since we don't have one), but the little Miss fell in love with it, named it, gave it hugs, checks on it everyday, and doesn't want to part with it now.  So, now I need to get it a bigger pot, find the best spot for it, and pray we get into a house with a yard by the end of this year so we can give it a proper home.  Wish me luck and a nurturing green thumb!  

The paper on the other hand was a huge success!  

I got some water boiling in a medium size pot, once it started boiling I took it off the burner , turned it off, and we added lined paper from an old notebook (a little at a time) that we tore into small pieces ourselves.

We let it sit there for 24 hours.

The next day we blended the soggy paper with our handy dandy hand blender without taking any water out.  Hand blenders are AWESOME by the way!! 

Here's where the fun REALLY got started!  This paper making project was so much more fun than I anticipated because of the sensory element in this part of the process.  

They squished, poured, scooped, squeezed, dropped, and did it all over again.  They had such a blast!  I didn't even care about whether or not the paper would come out anymore.  Just seeing how much enjoyment they got out of this whole project was a reward in itself.

But, natural instincts took over and what I thought was going to be a lost cause, turned out to be a child-centered project gone right.  I handed them the materials and they genuinely explored on their own terms.  It was beautiful.

It's okay if you don't get all the water out either.  In fact, it helped to have it more moist than dry when spreading and shaping the paper, so don't worry about that.  As long as you can manage it with your fingers and it isn't crumbling up or dripping excessively, don't worry about wringing out all the water beforehand.  Pressing the paper when you're all done will take care of the excess water. 

It took another day and a half to dry even with the warm weather.  The amount of time it took was worth the wait though because it showed my 5-year-old how much time goes into making recycled paper.  I'm not sure what we'll do with it yet, but I do know we'll be molding the paper next time - maybe something for Mother's day?  

What shapes would you make?

Earth Day is around the corner and I am thrilled to be introducing this Global celebration with my 5-year-old.  Earlier this week we watched a few short videos about recycling and where the non-recycleables go when we throw them away (via the Waste Management Solutions website).  I introduced the recycle symbol above and explained to her that anything with that symbol can be recycled into something else.  One of them happened to be a recycled cardboard packaging used for mushrooms.  I even showed her a few examples of items in our home with that symbol and had a quick sorting lesson.   

This post is brought to you by....my Tia's lemon tree.

Squeeeeeeeeeeeze.

A few peelings make good garbage disposal fresheners 

Remove the seeds, keep the pulp.

The only downfall to lemonade - sugar is required.

Purified H2O yo!

Ta Daaaa!!

That's all.

A Wordless Wednesday picture.
Broken till further notice :(

Happy New Year!!  A little late, I know, but it's still January so I don't feel so bad.  I do feel bad for being MIA for over a month on Mommy Confessions though.  You should know my recent absence online has not been the result of me giving up or losing interest in writing.  That's far from the truth.  The truth is I just needed some time off to focus on figuring out the next step in my life right now, and to start setting the stage to setting new family goals for us this year.  Last year my resolution was to lose weight and eat better.  The bad news to that resolution is that I gave up.  The good news is that I did lose a little!  8 pounds to be exact.  It isn't much but at least I lost something right?  This year my resolution is to try to start living a healthier lifestyle in more ways than just eating right because to tell you the truth, there's something else that is bothering me.  Something that needs my immediate attention.

Just before the Thanksgiving Holiday we brought out our  Christmas Tree and decorations.  It was a cozy day for us as we took our time hanging each ornament carefully, (the kids not so careful but excited more than anything).  This was the first year for my son to participate in this tradition during the Thanksgiving Holiday.  My daughter however is by now a pro.  She was the most excited to get started.  In fact she's the reason we brought out everything a few days earlier this year, because she had been eagerly begging us to bring our Christmas bins out of storage already.  She's a persistent little princess.  Once the tree was up, she was ready to teach her little brother a few things about hanging ornaments on a Christmas Tree.  Not long after we were done we somehow started talking about Santa Claus.  Until this Holiday season we hadn't talked too much about Santa Claus.  This year so far has proven to be different however, and she's coming at us with requests to help her start making a wish list.  This is something I was not prepared for.  Here's a confession you may be surprised to hear.

The verdict is in.  It's time for me to get back out there and get a J.O.B.  For months now, the question of whether or not I am ready to close my daycare and pay someone else to watch my children has been a daunting one to say the least.  Emotionally I can't say that I am 100% ready, but physically, mentally, professionally, I now know that I am ready.  I've even talked to a few people who I hold in high regard, who have been through what I am going through, and shared my concerns and doubts and all of them had great advice.  I've read articles and posts on numerous blogs on the subject of SAHM vs. WM, and have thought, and thought, and thought....and thought some more about my decision.  Ultimately it comes down to asking myself these questions....

As if posting three buttons on this post isn't enough, I need to emphasize with caps how EXCITED, NERVOUS, and honestly a little INTIMIDATED I am about this event I will be attending in SF in December.  I must also admit that I am a little worried that I may be in over my head since the title of this conference IS "PRO"  which I feel I am nowhere near deserving that title as an amateur Blogger.  I'm not even sure what to expect from this conference yet except that I will be learning some important Blogging tips and rules, advice on Blogging professionally, monetizing my Blog and hopefully something on disclosures and ethics.  Oh and Photography tips!  I could definitely use those. 

There's so much that I want to learn and so much I would love to do with this Blog, I just don't know where to start.  Hopefully some of my questions will be answered (and then some) at BlogHer PRO.  I'm sure that whatever the agenda holds for us Bloggers at BlogHer PRO will be nothing short of inspiring, motivating, and of course educational.  I just hope I can keep up with the PRO's.  Anyway, just wanted to share this exciting news with you.  Off to bed now.  Buenas Noches a todos.

I've decided to move The Work of Children tab here on Mommy Confessions because it didn't feel right separating the two.  It just makes more sense to me to have them together since both are reflections of Motherhood.  Also, I've started a new tab for our favorite books and products via amazon.   

If you would like to see previous posts in The Work of children click here.