My Babycakes machine!

I was tooling around my fave thriftstore and what do I see?! A pink Babycakes mini cupcake maker!! I squeeeeeealed and about fell over at the 6$ price. It was pristine looking!

These are cupcakes. I was trying to decide how much batter to use and what spoon or implement works best for filling the wells.

Overfilled and slightly crunchy or underfilled – didn’t matter. 7 minutes for cupcakes rocks! At our xmas party I put some girls (hey, Jones Girls!!) in charge of it and they had a blast and did great!

True Dat

The Clips

So, I was trolling around on PINTEREST and saw this neat idea for road trips. Easy Cheesy photo on a clothespin. If the kid causes trouble, the clip comes down and at the next stop only the clips that are on the visor get a treat.

We test drove (ha! pun intended) the idea and it works great! Now, our “treats” were when I handed back a can of pringles the kid whose clip was down got it last, etc. And I would also sometimes say the clip was down for 15 minutes (and keep adding time as the offender talked back) – it gave them some control to be good and have the clip reinstated and also improved time telling skills. (ha!)

Since all three kids sit side by side there was still my Sit on Your Hands punishment for poking prodding pinching touching. And each one has a fleece blanket and they can cover their heads making a cocoon of privacy for themselves. The autistic kiddo started it years and years ago (I told him it was a bubble and he cannot hear or see anything outside of the bubble) and the others followed. It is funny (but calm and quiet!) when each one does it and there are just three blanket covered kids in the backseat.

Even running errands we use these tricks. Got any in the car tricks??

Chalkboard Paint + Mugs

My chalkboard paint addiction is reaching new heights.

I have taken to spray painting mugs. Plastic from the Michael’s clearance bin (sorry cute birds – gotta paint over ya), thriftstore and yardsale finds (I love finding nice shaped mugs) and even mugs from my own cabinets (sorry, freebie mug from work).

I bought a bunch of chalk markers off ebay and gifted mugs n markers at the holidays. The chalk markers stay on through washings. Speaking of, I hand wash these. I just don’t want the spray paint to chip or flake and wreck my dishwasher. Not saying that will happen but rinsing out a mug is no biggie for the peace of mind that my dishwasher is safe from paint chips.

I do not prime or sand – yeah, that’s how I roll. I just use my spray paint trigger and mist several coats over the mugs. The bottoms do get a little chippy or scuffed with use (I’ve been using the same mug  since October). I prep the surface of the mug by rubbing a piece of chalk over it and wiping it off.

oh- and in case you are wondering that orange mug- I used an Identipen and it has not faded or anything- even in the dishwasher. I wish I were a better doodler.