We always say that we would do this and that if we had more time. “When I retire, I will learn to play the piano!” What if time was already there, under your nose?
A newborn sleeps 16 hours a day on average. Obviously he doesn’t sleep 16 hours in a row and some babies don’t sleep as easily as others but the numbers are there and you are off work for real. If, like me, you have the perfect baby (and some mothers curse you!), you can have some fun at home and develop new talent.
Here are some activity ideas
Painting
If you have the tiniest bit of imagination you can paint. It is not rocket science and it is not as expensive as you think. Dollar stores are filled with art supplies. Of course, great painters will tell you that the quality of the products is poor but it is good enough for your first pictures.
You can get a canvas for $2 and each tube of acrylic paint will cost around $1. To be able to mix all colors, you will need blue, yellow, red, black and white. You will also need brushes and a paint pallet where you will mix your colors. Overall, you should be able to paint two pictures for less than $15. Who know? It may help you find inspiration to paint ten more, each more beautiful than the last...
Fondant
You don’t really have to “make fondant”, let’s say, “bake spectacular cakes” because it is not easy to make good fondant. I tried two recipes, one with glucose and the other with marshmallows. Even if both worked, I am not sure if the whole clean up that followed and the price of the ingredients were worth it. If you are as clumsy in a kitchen as I am, you may want to buy it ready-to-use at DeSerres or Ares.
The real fun begins with coloring and shaping. You can even ask your kids to help you out because coloring is easy and working with fondant is very similar to playing with clay. After all, they are the pros right?
I discovered a whole lot of food coloring options when I visited Ares. I found, among others, a food coloring gel that is pigmented enough to dye a chunk the size of a tennis ball with one drop. It is available in about 30 different colors and MUST be manipulated with gloves. Fondant can be kept in the refrigerator for five days if it is well wrapped.
Obviously, you will need a cake to use your fondant. Any cake will do but the denser it is, the smoother it will look. Again, if you are so-so in a kitchen, you can use a cake mix but it is important to grease your baking pan enough to unmold it perfectly. After that, you will have to frost your cake with buttercream or any other type of icing and put it in the refrigerator so that the icing is hard enough not to stick on your fondant.
Then, you can roll some of your fondant to cover your cake. The decoration depends on your imagination, your mold, your dexterity, your cutters, your tools and your patience. With a lot of love and a bit of experience, you could eventually make cakes like these. Here is a great video to see what you are supposed to do.
Get back in shape with a Wii Fit
No woman feels as stiff as a woman who just gave birth. We feel heavy, we loose our hair, we feel fat and we would like to try the fondant recipe suggested by that Motherforlife.com girl. No problem! The girls who own a Wii Fit know that it doesn’t take pregnancy into consideration so your Mii shook its head and got fatter and fatter over the months. You are ready to fight back.
Doctors strongly suggest to wait 4 to 6 weeks after birth before jumping or running but you can begin Pelvic floor muscle exercises the day after. You can also do sit-ups.
With that in mind, you can use your Wii Fit to do floor and yoga exercises and to slowly get used to exercise again. Also, visualising your progress and your gradual weight loss will make you feel better and more beautiful.
Wear a bit of make-up, get back in your real clothes and ta-daa! You are back to your old self!
