Spring Bird Feeder Craft

My little guy and his cousin love watching the birds eat from the bird feeders and I knew they’d love crafting their own feeders. I tossed around a few ideas and the toilet paper roll bird feeders seemed right for the boys. I remember making these in either Brownies or Sunday School or maybe it was school. :/

I cut the tp rolls in half to make them easier to handle for little hands. Dip bowls were the perfect size to hold a little bit of bird seed and I scooped the peanut butter into a ramekin. I gave each of the boys a cookie/craft sheet to help contain the mess.

Look at the concentration. So Cute!

I saw that L! When they thought I wasn’t looking, they ate some PB and even tried the seeds. :S

The tubes make it really easy to for the young ones to slide the feeders onto branches. No need for help from mommy/aunty here!

Houston, we have a bird!

Two and three year-olds LOVE jumping in piles of dry crunchy leaves.

Don’t forget the ladybugs, they’re pretty neat.

More Bird Feeder Craft Ideas For You & Your Little One <3

Mama Gaga Bird Feeder — Made with TP Rolls and Sticks as Perches

Pine Cones and Toilet Paper Tubes — From The Make Your Own Zone

TPcraft.com’s Toilet Paper Roll Bird Feeder — Using ribbon to make a tiered feeder. And a great tip on subbing PB out for those who have allergies.

Milk/Juice Jug Recycled Feeder — From Rhythm of the Home

Thanks for visiting. – Taryn =^_^=

The Birthday Cake Predicament

What kind of birthday cake do you make a newly 12 year old boy?

It can’t be babyish. It MUST be cool. “I like Master Chief. You can make his head.” Uh-uh. Have you seen Master Chief?

Way beyond my skill level.

What to make, what to make? He likes Minecraft.

There would be so many possibilities to a Minecraft cake. But, all of those little squares. *shudder*

A monster? “Too babyish.”

How about a plain cake and icing? *withering stare* “I guess that would work, mom.”

Okay, not okay. Errr…. Think, think, think.

Spies Calvin and Hobbes comics sitting on table. Yay!

Hobbes it is.

Done, done and done. I think I deserve a pat on the back. ^_^

From The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book

Next year, plan ahead. And what kind of cake would a 13 year old boy like? Oh, boy… :/

Love, Taryn

I <3 You Berry Much!

Happy Valentine’s Day <3

Pretty sure I’m a sucka’ :/ Made Valentines for Ton to bring to school.

Anywho’s, I found a few Valentine-type shows for you to watch on Netflix (Canada) as my Valentine to you your kidlets!

(♥_♥)  - The Backyardigans – Season 2, Episode 8 (Special Delivery)
(♥_♥) - Go Diego Go! – Season 2, Episode 2 (Sammy’s Valentine)
(♥_♥) - Max & Ruby – Season 1, Episode 13 (Max’s Valentine)
(♥_♥) - Caillou – Season 3, Episode 6 (Mystery Valentine)
(♥_♥) - Angelina Ballerina: The Magic of Dance (about 39 minutes in)
(♥_♥) - SpongeBob Squarepants – Season 1, Episode 15 (Valentine’s Day)

You’re sweet and I’m not lion. - Taryn

This Morning

I love mornings when everyone in my house is in a good mood

and everything runs (almost) smoothly. Other than a jug of milk being

spilled everywhere, we had a fantastic morning. We built forts,

did some crafts, watched Diego, checked out which birds were visiting

and washed some laundry. All good and lots of laughs.

I made a freezer-paper stencil tee for Poe-tato. I used Mer Mags awesome free octopus stencil.

After I made this, he asked if I could make a mouse tee next. <3

Since I had the fabric paint out, I made a stamp from an old cork and tried out some fish scales.

Hoping to print some fabric with a pattern like this. ^_^ I got the idea from 365 saker du kan slöjda. 

And House Sparrows were visiting me this morning. They are so pretty, but not really the birds I want stopping by.

And my sister dropped off my mail today. Usually my mail consists of bills and flyers,

so I was pleasantly surprised when she handed me an unexpected parcel.

A free book from Penguin Books Canada! I can’t wait to steal a few moments to

read Beggar’s Feast by Randy Boyagoda. Looks to be a good read.

LOVE taryn <3

Samsung Note 2, Kid Tip

follow me @darthtaryn on instagram

Looking at photos on my Samsung Galaxy Note 2 and one of the kidlets pressed the “Change Player” button & the photos were on the tv! I had no idea I was able to stream photos, videos & music to the xbox through my phone so easily. Of course a 2 year old had to show me -_-

I haven’t had a chance to check how it exactly works, but I’m assuming through my wi-fi network. At least I hope that’s how, I don’t want anyone able to just look at my private photos. And I’ll remember this when I’m out and I hand my phone to one of my little dudes. It could turn into a potentially embarrassing situation.

It is a really cool feature and I didn’t have to download an app for that!

Crockpot Coconut Chicken Curry

“This is my advice to people: Learn how to cook, try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless, and above all have fun” – Julia Child

Cooking is a fairly new to me. I’ve been baking since I was very young, but I only really started cooking a few years ago. I love trying new recipes and am pushing myself to try new foods and cooking techniques. It can be intimidating and sometimes my meals are failures, but I am improving. I also love that my 11 year-old son helps me and I can teach him and learn with him.

Cooking doesn’t have to be hard. At our fingertips we have an endless resource of recipes, videos, tips, and food forums to help us find our way. Don’t just look at a recipe, scroll down and read the helpful comments left by others who have made the dish. You don’t need to be bound by a desktop computer, I do a lot of my recipe searching, collecting, meal planning and grocery lists on my iPod touch and on my cell.

We are lucky that we have tools and appliances that make our lives in the kitchen easier, too. Cooking a great supper doesn’t have to happen just on the stove-top. I use my crock-pot a few times a week to make a one-dish meal, the main dish or even a side. A couple things I want to try in the slow-cooker, but haven’t are desserts or hot chocolate. The bread machine is also a multi-use appliance. Sure you can make bread, but you can also make the dough for pizza, cinnamon buns, cake or even pasta dough and jam! And your blender doesn’t just need to blend smoothies or a piña colada, I used mine to process the ingredients together for the Chicken Curry.

This year I will continue to try different cooking techniques, recipes and will try to be more consistent with meal planning. And I will work on cooking more healthy meals. That last one might be hard, but I will try.

One of the best things about using a slow-cooker is the aroma of food cooking throughout the day and not having to rush to get dinner ready.

I served the chicken curry on a bed of rice and topped with plain yogurt and chopped green onions. Naan on the side.

Find the Crockpot Coconut Chicken and other mouthwatering recipes on the Carpe Season blog.

Backyard Birdwatching

Finally moved my bird feeders to a (hopefully) deer free part of my yard. And look at all the birds that are visiting! ^_^

Black-capped Chickadee. The least shy birds that stops by. I was only a couple meters or so away from this little guy.

Common Redpoll

Common Redpoll

A lonely Blue Jay. He’s a little nervous of me, but doesn’t mind chasing off the other birds.

I’m not 100%, but this super shy bird might be a Dark-eyed Junco?