Funny Friday: Mess? What Mess?

Today’s post is June’s Funny Friday, a regular feature published on the last Friday of every month. Funny Friday is a collaborative project. Each month one of the participants submits a picture, then we all write 5 captions or thoughts inspired by that month’s picture. Links to the other bloggers’ posts are below, click on them and see what they’ve come up with. I hope we bring a smile to your face as you start your weekend.

Here’s today’s picture. It was submitted by Karen of Dinosaur Superhero Mommy. 

1. AJ to his mom: Mess? What mess? You said "go find something to do", I found something to do.

2. AJ to his mom: I didn't do it, it was like this when I got here. I think it may have been a tornado. Lucky we're all OK.

3. AJ to his mom: Come to dinner? Now? I just finally got comfortable.

4. Mom to herself: I swear, I just turned my back for one second . . .

5. Mom to AJ: Your brother did it? What do you mean your brother did it? News flash, honey, I happen to know that don't have a brother. And before you ask, no, I'm not going to believe Dad did it either.


And now for something yummy for your Independence Day celebration:
 
   

Red Fluff and Blue Cookies

Click on the links below and let some other bloggers make you smile:

Not That Sarah Michelle 
Southern Belle Charm 
My Brain on Kids 
Molly Ritterbeck 
 Spatulas on Parade 
The Bergham Chronicles  
Measurements of Merriment 
 Dinosaur Superhero Mommy

Red Fluff and Blue Cookies

                                                                        ©www.BakingInATornado.com

 

Printable Recipe

 

Ingredients:
1 stick butter, softened
1 stick margarine, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
2 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
red food coloring
blue food coloring
red colored sugar
blue colored sugar

12 oz marshmallow fluff

Directions:
*Cream the butter, margarine, sugar, eggs and vanilla until creamy. Mix in the flour, cream of tartar and baking soda.
*Divide dough in half, place each in its own bowl. Add red food coloring to half the dough and blue food coloring to the other half.
*Wrap, separately, in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least an hour.
*Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
*Remove doughs from the fridge, roll into approximately 48 balls, half of each color. Roll each in colored sugar and place onto cookie sheets (about 16 per sheet).
*Bake for 10 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes on cookie sheet, then remove and cool completely.
*Line the cookies up in pairs, one blue and one red, flat side up.
*Spray spatula with nonstick spray and use it to place the fluff in either a piping bag or a gallon sized bag (snip the corner so you can pipe).
*Pipe about 1 TBSP of the fluff onto the flat side of half of the cookies. Gently top with the flat sides of the other half of the cookies to form sandwiches.
*Store in air tight container in the fridge.

Independence

Every 4 of July, for many years now, I’ve made red, white and blue jello.  This jello is not what I’d call difficult, but it takes 6 hours.  You’re not working on it all 6 hours, this thing isn’t brain surgery, but you do have to commit yourself to it.  Each layer needs to set before you can gently put on the next.  If you don’t wait long enough between layers, they will bleed together.  If you don’t work with the gelatin correctly, that layer will gel lumpy instead of smooth.  It’s never perfect, but what is?
 
Teaching kids, at home and in school, is supposed to be a long term commitment. They learn best in layers, each one the foundation for the next.

Red, White and Blue Jello

 

 

When Older Son was in Middle School, he had a Student Teacher for Chemistry.  She was teaching something about balancing chemical equations and Older Son didn’t get it.  Older Son was a good student with good grades but he was struggling with this concept.  He stayed after school with the Student Teacher but she just repeated what she had said in class.  I e-mailed her asking what we could do to make sure that Older Son masters this part of the curriculum.  Could we come at this information from another angle?  She answered that this is how she teaches.
 
This is what I came to understand:  If they’re not learning, you’re not teaching.
 
It had been a long time since I had been in school, but I sat down with Older Son’s book and papers and studied.  Once I figured out the lesson, I explained it to him in a very visual way, using props. The next day in class the students corrected each other’s homework.  Few were able to do it, but saw that Older Son had done his.  The Teacher wasn’t happy, but many circled around Older Son, who explained it to his classmates in the way that he was able to understand it.
 
Teaching is difficult.  But here’s the thing, so is learning.  When my kids were little and they misbehaved, I used to take a toy away from them.  I’d put it on top of the refrigerator for a while.  They could see it but they couldn’t have it until they understood the behavioral changes that needed to be made.  I remember trying to talk to my Mom on the phone one day and not being able to because the kids were disruptive.  Mom asked “Can they go play for a little while so we can have a short conversation?”  “No”, I answered “at the moment all of their toys are on top of the refrigerator”.
 
What happens when the toys spend too much time on top of the refrigerator?  Did one of those layers not set before you applied the next?  If they’re not learning you’re not teaching; even if you're utilizing the expertise of others it’s ultimately on you.  So, no matter what, you’re gonna keep walking into that brick wall because you know this; it may come at a price, in some cases a much higher price than you ever thought imaginable.  But, in the end, the reward is Independence . . .for all.
 
Happy 4th of July, everyone.

Red, White and Blue Jello

                                         ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe


Ingredients:
2 pkgs red jello, dissolve each (separately) in 1 cup boiling water, then add ½ cup cold water
2 pkgs blue jello, dissolve each (separately) in 1 cup boiling water, then add ½ cup cold water
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin dissolved (together) in ½ cup cold water
2 cups milk
¾ cups sugar
2 cups sour cream mixed with 2 tsp vanilla
 
 
Directions:
*Prepare 1 of the red jellos as indicated above and pour into a 9 X 13 pan.  Put in refrigerator until set (about 45 minutes).
*While red is setting, put milk in a pan and heat but don’t boil.  Add sugar and stir until dissolved.
*Remove from heat and add the dissolved unflavored gelatin.  Wisk in and let cool a little on counter.
*Wisk in the sour cream and vanilla mixture.  Leave on counter.
*Once red jello is set, carefully top with a layer of 1 ½ cups of the white mixture.  Refrigerate until set (about 45 minutes).
*Repeat with blue layer, then white, then red again then white again and finally the last blue layer.
*Allow final layer to set before cutting.