This is a great way to dye your Easter eggs this year (by the way, Easter is in 18 days!) for whatever reason matters the most to you: it’s a fun science experiment, you stay away from commercial dyes, it is cheap AND its just something new and different!

All Natural Easter Egg Dyeing

Colors

1. To make a beautiful light blue dyed Easter egg, simply take 3/4 of a head of red cabbage, chop it and put it in a large pot. Add 2 T. of white vinegar, add the eggs and fill pot with water.

2. To make a green, add 2 cups of spinach (or a box of frozen spinach) to a pot. Add 2 T. of white vinegar, add the eggs and fill pot with water.

3. To make a red (and a hot pink for some of the eggs!), add 3 cups of cranberry juice and 3 chopped beets in a pot. Add 2 T. of white vinegar, add the eggs and fill pot with water.

4. To make a yellow, add 2 teaspoons of turmeric to your pot. Add 2 T. of white vinegar, add the eggs and fill pot with water.

5. I forgot to do this one BUT you can use chili powder (just like I used the turmeric above) to make a fun red/orange color.

Dyeing

1. Bring your mixture to a boil then reduce heat so it is simmering for 30 minutes. Don’t let it boil too long or the eggs will crack!

2. Let the eggs sit in the mixture for a couple of hours.  Be sure to stir them around a few times so the color soaks in on all sides of the egg.

Note: In this pictures it looks like I combined mixtures. I did not. I was just trying out a weird color. So please boil and simmer all of your mixtures SEPERATE.

Check out our beautiful eggs! Don’t they look so rustic and natural? This was a lot of fun to do. The girls loved guessing what colors the vegetables or spices would turn the eggs and then waiting to see if they were right!

Another fun part of this “experiment” was that every single egg turned out a different shade (we did use brown and white eggs) and I just think they are beautiful.

But what to do with the veggies? Throw them in the compost pile! Your garden will be extra happy this year.

]]> http://www.utahsnaturalkids.com/all-natural-easter-egg-dyeing/feed http://www.utahsnaturalkids.com/special-spot-in-nature http://www.utahsnaturalkids.com/special-spot-in-nature#comments Fri, 25 Sep 2009 08:24:36 +0000 admin http://www.utahsnaturalkids.com/?p=122

Find your spot in nature.
Help your kids find their special spot.
Make sure you spend time there daily if you can.
Fall is the perfect time to read outside, draw outside, and relax outside.

This was my place for quite awhile:

Abby loves to be under trees:

What is yours? I would love to see a picture!

Make sure your children know they can think, create, and relax in nature.

Have family drawing time out in nature, eat your family meals outside together, or just read books outside together!

My first harvesting experience I can remember was getting permission from the librarian to climb the huge apple tree in front of the library to collect apples for pies, applesauce and juice.

Fall is the perfect time to do this with all of the city fall harvest and festivals, farms and barnyards opening their doors to customers, farmer’s markets, etc. It is always important to take the time to teach and explain to your children the source of their food.

Grape Harvesting in Our Backyard

Apple, Peach, Pear, Plum, Cantaloupe, Eggplant Harvesting at Our Neighborhood Farm

Here are some great resources:

Kids Farm is a website following the Harvesting on a farm in Colorado. Your kids can click on different produce to see where it comes from!

Local Harvest is a great place to point you in the right direction

Teaching Old-Fashioned Values in a Modern World

from the publication Parents

{ 4 } Hold the door.
Many kids barge through a door, barely noticing the person who opened it or worse still, whether it’s going to slam in someone’s face. They don’t automatically think that they should get the door; you have to explain to them that it’s the kind thing to do.
TEACH IT TODAY:
Practice at every opportunity. Once introduced to the concept, young kids love to hold doors because they feel like big strong helpers doing a very important job. Start at home: “Mommy’s carrying a lot of groceries. Who can hold the door for me?” At the store or at school, where doors may be heavy for a young child to hold on their own, ask them to help you: “Here comes Mrs. Roberts and Brian. Let’s hold the door for them because that’s the polite thing to do.” Begin very low-key and then one day - because you’re not requiring it or demanding it - you’ll be amazed to hear your child say, “Mommy, I can do it myself.”

{ 5 } If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all. (My personal favorite!)
Young kids learn from watching TV today that it’s okay - even sometimes funny - when people say rude things to each other. Add that to the fact that a young child’s sense of empathy isn’t fully developed, and it’s a recipe for a humiliating situation.
TEACH IT TODAY:
First, resist watching inappropriate TV shows - or, at least discuss the problem behavior with your child. For instance say, “Do you think that was mean of Simon to talk to the singer like that?” Then let your child know what she says has the power to hurt the feelings of another kid or adult. See whether she can recall an example of a time when her feelings were hurt so that you can be sure she grasps the concept. It’s also worth making up scenarios and asking her whether the person in the story said a good or bad thing. The more concrete you can make it for her, the better she’ll understand it.

{ 6 } Give up your seat.
It usually doesn’t cross a young kid’s mind that giving up a seat to an older person on the train or at a party is the polite thing to do. The chances he’ll actually do it are even slimmer.
TEACH IT TODAY:
Lead by example. The next time you’re riding a crowded bus or train, ask your child to sit with you. Say: “Would you come sit here on my lap so this nice man can have a seat? I think he would really appreciate it.” The more often children see you do it, the more liable they are to come up with the idea themselves.

Thank you to the magazine Parents for this fantastic article and for Laurie who typed it all up (since it was not available online through Parents) and allowing me to post it here!

You simply fill up your cleaned plastic bottles with tap water and then add any sort of substance that would easily color the water. Beet juice, carrot juice, cayenne powder, curry powder, dandelion root powder, cream of tartar or tempura paint would work fantastically to color the water.

I glued the top to each bottle but still was not feeling comfortable with knocking big bottles full of colored water over in my house so decided this will be an outside bowling activity.

You can also make some fun  I Spy Bottles with your kids to reuse plastic bottles.

“Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country…”

-President John F Kennedy

Make community service a top priority. There are numerous ways to involve your family in community service. Community service projects do not need to take an extreme amount of time or empty your pocketbook. There are wonderful websites to put you in the right direction: The Volunteer Family, The United Way, U-Can-Do, and many more. Ask your local church group, library, senior center or school if they are in need of any help.

Golden Rule Treat others with respect and dignity, the way they would like to be treated. Teach them to care and have empathy for those around them.

Following Rules Teach them to follow the rules of your home, their school and society. Make sure they know what their responsibilities are as a citizen of their country.

Environment As a family, talk about what you can do to help take care of our earth in order to leave it better than when we arrived!

Leadership Teach your children by example that sometimes it takes courage to be a leader but that you care about fighting unfair laws, improving current conditions, and seeking equality and tolerance for everyone.

Education Read stories about different cultures, community service in the news, and civil right books.  Explore with your children issues going on in your community and nation. Teach them of our wonderful forefathers who fought for our freedom.

Raise them to be PROUD to be an American!

What do you think the keys are to raise a great citizen? ]]> http://www.utahsnaturalkids.com/how-to-raise-a-great-citizen/feed http://www.utahsnaturalkids.com/seven-smooches http://www.utahsnaturalkids.com/seven-smooches#comments Sat, 12 Sep 2009 05:02:18 +0000 admin http://www.utahsnaturalkids.com/?p=75

Seven Smooches is an inviting little shoppe with items created and hand sewn by two mothers who have seven children between them. Their company is inspired by the indulgent natural softness of a child’s kiss. All of their beautiful products are one of a kind, machine washable and made out of 100% recycled wool sweaters.

I love the beautiful astrology blankets they offer.   Each blanket is hand felted and stitched with the constellation of your choice. These would make a perfect little baby gift.

Astrology Blankets $50 each

Seven Smooches also offers many different types of clothing, from kimonos to cardigans - with attention to every detail.

Hollywood has gone crazy over this shoppe, rumor has it that Halle Berry, Laila Ali, Marcia Cross and Courtney Cox Arquette’s daughters wear the clothing. I have fallen for it too.  I just love everything they offer.

Over the years, I’ve been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to travel a bit and learn from many great teachers around the world. My intention for my blog is to share what I’ve learned in the realm of parenting and raising children. I hope that what you find here has a meaningful impact on you and your families as it’s had on mine.

Learning about the world through food

One of my favorite ways to explore other cultures is through their food. If started when your children are young enough they will gladly join you in the journey. Remember, children eat what they’re used to eating. Indian children eat curry, Thai children eat Pad Thai and German children eat Schnitzel. If you only offer your children chicken fingers and carrots with ranch dressing, they will likely turn their noses up to Persian stew. So start young and really stretch their pallets while they are malleable.

Breakfast

Carrot Juice. Yes, carrot juice! Start your child on carrot juice when she is young. It is a fantastically nutritious juice and they will learn to love the taste. I started buying Bolthouse Farm’s 3-pack of 100% Carrot Juice at my local warehouse store as soon as my daughter began drinking cow’s milk. Since then she’s learned it’s breakfast drink.

Carrot juice is naturally rich in powerful antioxidants including Vitamin C and Vitamin A from alpha-carotene and beta-carotene. It is also a natural source of potassium and is fat and cholesterol free. My trick is to mix it with pomegranate juice, which gives it a fun color and a little bit of sweetness.

Fritters are another item I incorporate into breakfast to ensure we eat enough vegetables. I grate zucchini and other vegetables and mix them with an egg and a cup of pancake mix. I form them into patties and cook them in extra virgin olive oil.

Lunch

Roasted and pureed butternut squash frozen into ice cubes is something I always keep on hand. I mix sliced or shredded cheese, cracked pepper and two thawed cubes of squash together and grill it on some multi-grain bread like just like a grilled cheese! I don’t think my kids even know what a regular grilled cheese sandwich tastes like!

“Pasta” spaghetti squash is a weekly meal in my home and which we eat as leftovers the next day for lunch. Spaghetti squash is so yummy; you have to give it a try! I cut it in half, season it with olive oil, salt and pepper, cover it with foil and roast it on high for an hour in the oven. Take it out and start pulling on the flesh with your fork and it turns into “pasta!” I saute some bell pepper, onion and whatever other veggies I have on hand and throw it in with the squash. To make it extra tasty you can add a tiny bit of freshly grated parmesan cheese.

I am still in need of new ideas for squeezing veggies into my daughter’s meals other than the normal sliced and diced raw veggies. Those mini peeled carrots are great, but it’s nice to change it up once in a while. Any suggestions?

Butternut squash photo by romanlily, shared via Flickr.

What counts for 25% of most households’ electricity consumption? Your refrigerator. So, of course, you are going to want to make sure you are running it the most efficient way that you can!

1. Be Organized–You waste time and energy with keeping the door open while trying to find something in your messy fridge. I have to admit that I am horrible with this, which is why I tidy up my fridge one day a week.  If I didn’t, it would be scary! Up to 30% of the cool air in the fridge escapes every time you open the door, which is quite a bit!  Be quick when you get something out!

2. Going on Vacation–Usually we think of going through our fridge before a vacation so nothing spoils, but it turns out the emptier the fridge, the better. You can turn down the power or even turn it off entirely.

3. Clean Yearly—By keeping the coils in the back of your fridge dust free it makes your fridge 30% more efficient!

4. Wait for Food to Cool–If you wait for the food to cool before putting it in the fridge and make sure it’s covered, it means less energy is used from the fridge to cool it!

5. Check the Door Seal– Try this great test I found online, “By putting a piece of paper in the door you can check your door’s seal! If it slips out when the door’s closed, you may need to change the seal and/or door magnets, to stop cool air from escaping.”

Now we can all get to work on checking our fridges!