Movie Review:: Judy Moody and the Not-so-bummer-summer.

WHY is it raining in the middle of July?! Apparently, the rest of the nation is taking all of the energies of the sun and it doesn't have the energy to shine here (not bitter, just annoyed). I HAD to get the kids out of the house for little to no money. Since The Science Factory isn't open until 12:30 this week, we chose the buck-fifty theater. Except on Mondays (the day we went), tickets are only 75 cents!!!!

Judy Moody is such a fun movie! Judy Moody has the fashion sense inspired by Rebekah (I'm sure), and an attitude inspired by a 9 year-old that wants to be more mature. It's the kind of movie that reminds you what it's like to be a kid, teaches you to take time to have fun with your kids, and what's important in life. I totally want to make a family thrill chart (much like Judy's in the movie).

There's friendship, forgiveness, family, and FUN! It's clean (aside from using "crap" a couple of times--which I'm guilty of nearly every day). There are some parts that some kids might find scary: A Big-foot sighting in the middle of the night that scares the characters, and a spoof horror movie that Judy and her friend go to in an attempt to earn Thrill Points. My girls didn't mind these scenes at all and they are usually kinda chickens. I was always amazed how REAL Judy Moody seemed. And it's always nice to see kids learn a lesson the full-circle sort of way.

Although the lack of sun in Oregon might try to ruin our summer, we will choose to have a not-so-bummer-summer! Thanks, Judy Moody, for the inspiration!

A Funeral Fit For a Fish

Cutie Patootie, of the Beem home, was a good fish. He was the object of several art projects and the subject of Rebekah's first 2-point expository paragraph. He is survived by his first owners Rebekah, Maddy, and Isabelle. Cutie was a successor of the late-great Red Rover. Although he made several nests in hopes of a family, a mate never came, baby fishies never ensued. Cutie Patootie, you will be missed. Your tricks brought joy to our family as did your fishy kissy faces.

Shhh....we accidentally did home-school today.

Thanks to rainy-day Oregon, the girls were forced to get creative in their play time. They got their counting money jar out and started sorting, counting, and (dare-I-say?) learning.

• Isabelle started counting coins as she put them in the counter. She counted to 38! Last I knew, she could only count to 12 (which I was impressed with)
• Madeline counted her nickles by 5's and her dimes by 10's!
• Rebekah multiplied by 4's to figure out how many dollars she had in quarters.

And this brings me to the first ever Bringing Up the Princess give-away! As many of you know, I

have quite the little Mary Kay inventory. And what does every woman need, but a miniature brush set?! Who ever guesses how much money we have in our money counter, will get an eye brush set (4 brushes and a pretty carrying case)! Let the guessing begin!

Money saved equals pedicures gained?

Today I was given the opportunity to share my love for homemade cleaning and beauty supplies at church with some really fun ladies. My husband laughed when I said that I was going to teach a homemaking class because, as my close friends know, cleaning/organizing are not my strong-suit. They're barely on my list. I am good, however, at being a super cheap tightwad.

This class was a ton of fun! It fills me to the brim to be around groups of ladies (particularly being the center of attention for a while *wink wink*). As you know, I have been loving making laundry soap, dishwasher detergent, and all purpose cleaner. Today, I used the teaching opportunity to try some new recipes out that I have been putting off. It energized my passion for this stuff!

We made homemade deodorant, toothpaste, bug spray, shampoo, all purpose cleaner, laundry

soap. I loved the toothpaste (even came home to use it with my toothbrush, as opposed to my finger in class)! I keep running my tongue over my teeth to feel how smooth they are! It's sorta like I just went to the dentist to have my teeth cleaned. The deodorant is a little goopier than I anticipated, but I'm sure I can add more baking soda and cornstarch. As for now, I'm storing it in my fridge. The verdict is still out on the all purpose cleaner. It did remove a pen mark off the table during the class, though.

And I even learned new things!

• You can use old soap stubs to add to the laundry detergent and save on FelsNaptha.
• For yummy smelling laundry (something I've missed with the homemade detergent and the recent allergic reaction to fabric softening sheets): put a few drops of essential oil on a wash cloth or paper towel and throw it in the dryer (too much can be dangerous though).
• For static cling: add a ball of aluminum foil to the dryer! Reuse over and over and over!
• Store homemade deodorant and toothpaste in baby food jars.
• Don't confuse the deodorant with the toothpaste. The deodorant may be edible but it kinda tastes like vaseline!
• Citric acid is optional in the dishwasher detergent (in fact I heard it counteracts the washing soda, not sure how true that is). I'm still toying with that recipe to find what I like.

I'm excited to do this again! Next time, imagine the things I will learn as the student!

Enjoy your homemade cleaning/body care supplies making! Feel free to add any links or recipes that you have, and if you've used em or not! Oh that would be fun to read! Who knows, if you save enough money (which you will), you can use that extra moolah for a pedicure!

Cupcakes and Proverbs

When Chuck told me that he was assigned dessert to take to a work pot-luck, I knew this would be prime time to show off his wife's cupcake skills! His wife makes YUMMY cupcakes. Plus, he bought her a cake decorating kit for her birthday, so it's a win-win situation. (okay, I'll stop talking about myself in the third person).

All the time I was making cupcakes (mini ones and regular sized ones), I couldn't help but think that everyone will love these cupcakes so much and "her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land (Proverbs 31:23)." I even made little Symantec symbols on all of them.

Now that I'm done patting my own back...

I'm sure they'll get eaten, but I like to dream of higher things for my cupcakes. My cupcakes are a ministry to my husband! So silly I'm sure, but I'm sticking to it.

Movie Review :: Hoodwinked Too: Hood vs. Evil

In true Oregon style, it rained on our campfire/bike riding plans today. Because the girls got all smiley faces at bedtime (AGAIN!) this week, we treated the family to the cheap theater and some (not-so-cheap) popcorn. We didn't let it rain on OUR parade!

I had already checked the movie reviews , and knew that although rated PG, Hoodwinked Too was more appropriate for my girls than the G-rated Rio.

Hoodwinked Too is full of some big voices like Glenn Close, Joan Cusack, Bill Hader, Amy Poehler, Andy Dick, Brad Garrett, and Martin Short. But its the content I was most impressed with.

This is a movie all about hope! When it seems there's no way out, no way for good to overcome evil; that is when victory is the sweetest. Most impressively, it displayed forgiveness, redemption, justice, teamwork, and admitting when you're wrong. I can use the theme of this movie to teach my kids! When's the last time you could say THAT about a movie?!

It did have a lot of potty humor (which the 12 year-old boy in me totally enjoyed), and some innuendo. If I'm not mistaken though, none of that innuendo was sexual. There is a part where Twitch the squirrel comes out of his trailer with a couple of hot-babe-squirrel-girls, however (not a plus). Rather than using curse words or almost-curse-words, the movie resorts to "muffins." This is something I'm fine with my kids doing, so I wasn't disappointed by it. The reviews on line don't really agree with me on this movie, but as we all know...

I'm right, they're wrong!

Frugal and Homemade :: Dishwasher Detergent

I promised some posts about my homemade cleaning supplies. And I'm ready to deliver on one!

This is the easiest homemade thing I tried yet (besides diluted tea tree oil for sanitizer/cleaner)! And it worked marvelously!

1 tsp. Borax

1 tsp. Washing Soda

1 tsp. white vinegar

I mixed equal parts Borax and Washing Soda into a sealable container. Eyeballed a tablespoon-ish into the dishwasher and added a lid-full of vinegar (fun to watch the fizzle).

I was very pleased to find clean and sparkley dishes! A friend of mine read that if you add citric acid to the rinse aid compartment, it acts a rinse aid. I'm too lazy or cheap (or a combo of both) to go to that extra mile, but I don't honestly see the need for it!

Happy dish-washing blogging friends!