I think it was on
The Crafty Crow that I recently saw the link to
this post on how to make your own sidewalk chalk. I didn't realize it was so easy! It is simply Plaster of Paris mixed with water and tempera paint. This would be a great crafty thing to do with school-aged kids but since I don't have any of those my excuse to try it out was Connor's upcoming birthday. Using sidewalk chalk helps build little hand muscles after all, and what 3-year old doesn't enjoy creating masterpieces on their driveway?
Here is what you need...
-toilet paper or paper towel tubes (basically a mold-- next time I'm going to Ikea for some of their silicone ice trays, they always have cute shapes!)
-scissors
-duct tape
-wax paper
-3/4 cup warm water
-small bucket or disposable container
-1 1/2 cups Plaster of Paris
-2-3 tablespoons tempera paint
1. Cover one end of each tube with duct tape. Cut as many pieces of wax paper as you have tubes. Each piece should be as long as the tube and about 4 inches wide. Roll up each piece of wax paper and slip it into the tube. (Note: My wax paper kept getting crunched up inside the tube as the Plaster of Paris mixture was pretty thick. Next time I would probably tape it to the outside of the tube to prevent it from slipping down inside.)
2. Pour the water into the bowl or bucket. Sprinkle the Plaster of Paris over the water and stir the mixture thoroughly. Mix in the paint. (I started with yellow and divided it in half to stir some red into one half in order to make orange, then I did a batch of green and a batch of red.)
3. Place each tube tape side down on a level surface. Pour the wet plaster mixture into the tubes. Lightly tap the sides of each tube to release air bubbles, then set the plaster-filled tube aside to harden for a few days. (Mine was dry over night.) Once they are dry, peel off the tubes and wax paper. Your chalk is ready for action!
To present the chalk as a gift, I wrapped the tubes back up in wax paper, secured with double-sided tape, and colored dots on the paper in the same color as the chalk. I placed them in a strawberry basket (the small green ones they come in at the store) and tied multi-colored polka dot ribbon around the basket. No wrapping paper to have to buy, only to have it thrown in the trash. Who knows, maybe Connor will be the next Picasso? And to think, it all started with some homemade sidewalk chalk. :)
Mason and I finally made it down to see Baby Madeline! She is such a little cutie and looks so much like her big brother Jack. Madeline makes the most adorable high-pitched squeak every once in a while, it absolutely melts your heart.
Auntie Roseanne was also there visiting... this was the best picture we could get of the two of them though. It was a bad hair day. ;) 
I can't say Mason was having a bad hair day... more like a bad photo day. He looked like this in all of them. At least in the picture above he didn't have his tongue sticking out part way.
I found a tutorial for these Ruffle Bottom Onesies in a link from Joy's Hope a while back and couldn't wait to try it out. My sewing skills are limited but it looked like something I could handle.
I will admit that my first attempt wasn't my best work... but the second one turned out great! And yep, this is my son, modeling Ruffle Butt Onesie #2. Hopefully Madeline will enjoy these in about 6 months...
(Someday this picture is going to come in handy, I'm sure.)
Tuesday was his check-up and our little chunk weighed in at 17 pounds, 14 ounces and measured 27 1/2 inches long. He is in the 60th percentile for his weight still and 80th for his height-- Mase is definitely going to be tall.
At 5 months we started him on baby rice cereal and in the past two weeks he has enjoyed watermelon, banana, nectarine, avocado and carrot. We are trying to expose him to as many varieties of flavors as possible. This week will be cantaloupe, broccoli and beets. And yes, I'm making our baby food. It's so ridiculously easy and CHEAP. Not to mention I know exactly what goes into my baby's mouth and can make sure there are no chemicals, preservatives or pesticides. Kim, it's so easy and takes so little time, even you could do it. ;)
On Sunday we drove up to the cutest little lake about an hour away and got a chance to use our 
Our little family of three started the day off by visiting the Sunday farmers market and picking up some yummy ripe fruit for our picnic lunch. We also got 3 dozen extra large (organic, hormone-free) eggs for $4! You can't beat that deal.
Mason is wearing my hat because we forgot his. Tightened up all the way it actually worked fine. The burp rag on his head helped it fit a little better.
That's my little water bug!
A perfect Sunday afternoon.
