A Mama Rika Story: When Life Hands You Lemons...

Every year, Bub's birthday passes by right in the middle of Scout camp. On this particular birthday, some of the other boys decided to lock him in the port-a-joh (portable outhouse). This was, of course, not exactly the best of presents. His brother, Sticky, tried his best to dissuade the tormenters. When the mischievious deed had been done, Sticky attempted, albeit unsuccessfully, to unlock the john immediately.

In this predicament, Bub had choices. It didn't take him long to decide upon a course of action. He promptly retrieved his harmonica from his side pocket and began playing a lively tune! This unusual response prompted laughter from his captors. As they chuckled, they let him out of his prison.

Lesson learned: This was an awesome example to me of the well-known advice, "When life hands you lemons...make lemonade." I wish I could be as positive in my attitude and as quick in my thinking as is Bub. What a cool kid. :)

Mama Rika Asks, "To Date, or Not to Date..."

Teenagers. I've written about them before. (See it here.) I have four teens. And, since I have four, a lot of things that go on around here involve them. I love hearing about their night's out. I love talking to them about their plans for the weekend.

We like to be creative. Creative costs less money. I like helping them brainstorm fun and silly ideas of things to do, or ways to ask someone out on a date. (Here are some of our ideas.)

Here is a recent event. Bub asked a cheerful chickadee to a formal dance by attaching a very large, long roll of paper with a message on it to the side of the girl's house. Under the sign was a silly little rhyme to ask her out. In return, the cheerful chickadee came to our house when Bub was gone for the evening and did this. (Yes, we knew she was coming.)

She had a little help from Nan. Those two giggled like crazy as they sprayed the confetti in every direction.
When Bub arrived home, he found the TP and a poetic note answering in the affirmative. His main concern was how in the world he was supposed to get to bed. Obviously, he made it. Getting back up in the morning, however, proved to be too much. (He was turning off the alarm on his phone and his eyes just didn't seem to be able to open.)
Okay, so that didn't really answer the question in the title, but oh well!

Share with us--what are some fun ways you have asked people out on dates? What have you done on a date that is totally a hoot, yet costs little to nothing?

What would a post be without a little friendly nagging to do your Spring Clean for 5?? Come on, now!

Mama Rika's Child Sits Like Only a Snake Could.

I threatened to take a picture and put it on my blog if he didn't straighten up. He straightened up, but not before big brother secretively took the pic below and sent it to me. LOL! He doesn't look very comfy, does he???

Ms. Wise and Ms. Otherwise Learn about the Haka Dance

The boys had an opportunity to get a little culture. They, along with several other teenage boys, learned the Haka dance from a Polynesian group. {What's Haka?} With minimal practice, they pulled off a very entertaining show complete with make-up and costume. Here is Sticky after the performance. I think he is ready to never don make-up again. And here you have Bub hamming it up for the camera (surprise, surprise). He really is a handsome kid--I swear it!

The video for your enjoyment:

A little loud. A little crazy. But definitely fun and entertaining. The boys loved doing it.

p.s. See other show and tells here.

Pictures from Mama Rika (Da Boys)

This poor, starving college kid (remember this post?) lost 3 pounds while away at school! Hopefully we were able to fatten him up a bit before sending him back to his studies and fun.This is our puzzle maniac.Not even a camera in the face can keep him from focusing on his puzzles.

Yes, all the boys got Disney shirts. Cute, huh?

The proud owner of a laptop. (No he didn't get it from Santa. He bought it himself with his own savings.)
Mom! Stop taking pictures of me!!

Yay! Patchy is home! (Love the bedhead.)

Okay...Guess whose eyeball. (Yeah, I know, I am weird.)
Want more pics? See (Da Girls) (Da Baby) and (Christmas).

Mama Rika Knows How to Shop for Teenage Boys!

If you are fond of shopping for clothing while having teenage boys along, please ignore this post.

I happened upon a most delightful way of shopping for teenage boys that allows them to have some say in their choice of apparrel, but doesn't require dragging them around to store after store with you.

Here's what I did. Once I arrived at my favorite shopping destination, I hit the clearance racks first. On this day, I discovered a couple of pairs of shorts in the right size, but had questions as to whether Bub would wear those particular styles. I whipped out my phone and dialed Bub's number.

In the midst of my descriptions, Bub inquired as to whether it would't be easier to just send him a picture of the clothing. Ingenious! Why didn't I think of that? {Kids are much better at figuring out ways to make life easier than moms are.}

With that, I was able to zap over this picture to him. Do you care for this pair?

Or perhaps orange plaid wouldn't be bad? {Did you catch my lovely rhymes?;)} There you have it. Pain free shopping for both mother and teen. Works for me!

{Works for me Wednesday can be found here. }

Filling Hungry Teenage Boys & Wannabes with Food and Teaching Moments

The never-ending battle is always hard-fought. You struggle down the grocery aisle with carts filled beyond intended capacity. You scrimp, you budget. You cook, you bake. Yet, they still come in at all hours of the day (and into the night) with the same boring question that always begs a new and exciting answer. “I’m hungry…what’s there to eat.” And just who are these people? Yes, they are the bottomless pits with hollow legs—TEENAGE BOYS!!

Even though they can drive you crazy with their continual requests, there is much to be said about opportunities for teaching when it comes to food.

For instance, have you noticed how the very foods that keep you full for the longest periods of time tend to be the same foods that are nutritious? Teach them this concept!

One fun way to teach is through stories.

My mother used to (actually still does) like to tell a story about when she first came to America. {A little background is in order here. Mom has lived here in America for decades, but is originally from Sweden. Swedes eat good hearty breads. They enjoy loaves of rye and solid, dark loaves of round wheat breads. They like the stuff you can really sink your teeth into and savor.} Mother went to the American grocery store looking for a loaf of bread. She looked left and right at dozens of loaves. Finally she picked one up, surprised at the lightness of the package.

She stared at the uniformly sliced, very pale, white slices. Thinking there must be some mistake, she put one hand at the opening of the package of bread and one hand at the other end. Then she squeezed it like an accordian. To her amazement, the entire loaf became one paltry slice. In horror, she recoiled, and as she did, the bread seemed to spring back into shape of its own free will. She couldn’t believe such an object was meant for eating.

This was the beginning of how my Mom taught me to love good whole grains. Mom has a flair for telling wonderful tales that I am sure are only slightly exaggerated. ;)

Now I teach my own kids. Whole grains are best. They stick to your ribs much better than the white stuff.

That just reminded me of another Mom story. I bet you weren’t aware of this, so I’ll let you thank me later. It is a proven fact that doughnuts do not digest well. Mom told us of an article she had read in which scientists were cutting open a human cadaver. Inside the man’s stomach the remains of undigested, seven-year-old doughnuts were found! This gave no doubt to my mind what the man’s cause of death had been. I still don’t eat doughnuts to this day…

There you have it. Whole grains + no doughnuts = healthy life. Of course there’s a whole lot more to it, but goodness, think of all the fun you can have as you teach your children to love healthy eating.

Also with food, you can teach them to use good manners. Use your fork. Say please. Don’t talk with your mouth full. Keep your legs under the table.

Keep your elbows off the table.

What do you feed them to fill them up physically while you try to fill them up mentally? Here’s a couple of favorites:

Bill Jerone Burritos (Named after I mistakenly thought that is what my father-in-law said when he actually said, “Build Your Own”)

Place all or most of these ingredients buffet style on the table or counter.

Very large tortillas (and some small ones for the Wannabes)
Hot Cooked rice (I like brown—it is more filling!)
Hot Beans (kidney, chili, black, whatever) seasoned as you like.
Hot Ground beef, or shredded chicken
Chopped tomatoes
Corn
Onions (chopped)
Olives
Grated cheese
Chopped cilantro
Peppers
Anything else you have in the fridge that looks good
Sour cream or plain homemade yogurt
Salsa (homemade is best, or use store bought with fresh tomatoes, garlic, lemon juice & onions thrown in.)

Each eater grabs a plate and fills their tortilla with desired ingredients.

Feather-light Wholegrain Wheat Waffles

Beat until stiff and set aside:
3 egg whites (save yolks)

Mix together:
1 ½ cups wheat flour (can use ½ wheat, ½ white if you want)
1 Tbs baking powder
½ tsp salt

Mix together and then add to the dry ingredients:
1 ½ cups milk
2 Tbs oil
2 tsp vanilla
3 egg yellows

Fold in the egg whites gently. Pour into waffle maker a scoop at a time. Yum! I usually at least triple the batch and then freeze the leftovers on a wax paper lined cookie sheet. When they are frozen, I put them in a zippy bag in the freezer to use for later breakfasts.

Here’s something I do for tiny Wannabes. First, I start with a raw fruit or vegetable like celery.

I wash them and cut them into small pieces. Then I put them in a small pot to boil, like these carrots.

When the fruit or veggie is nice and soft tender, I remove it from the pot and put it in a sealable container and put it in the fridge so that it is ready when baby is. Those are apples in the picture below. To keep things simple, I cooked these items one right after the other. When I was done I had several small meals ready for my little person to eat without a lot of trouble for me to fix when he is ready to eat.

Hopefully, like my Mom taught me, I am teaching by hungry boys (and girls) good, healthy ways to eat and I am doing it with fun and humor. What are some of your favorite, most filling and simple things to fix? Share, share! Also check out this unprocessed recipe blog for more good recipes.