Mom Tip #4 The Handprint Kits

When you buy those cute little stepping stone hand print kits, please listen to these directions and not the ones in the package:

1. Take really, really old mixing bowl and fill with the amount of water specified on package

2. Dump only 3/4 of the dry cement mixture given directly into the bowl

3. Stir like CRAZY and immediately dump into the mold (forget about these so called lumps you are supposed to watch out for. It's cement. If you take more than 1 minute mixing it, the entire thing is a giant lump)

Now, here's what happened when you actually follow the directions on the package:

1. Used regular mixing bowl because it says with immediate washing the mixture will "come right out". Filled with specified water.

2. Slowly stirred in 3/4 of the cement mixture into the bowl. After 3/4 of the powder was in, the mixing stick that came with the package gets stuck in the giant lump of cement that has started to harden. I quickly added another tablespoon of water to the bowl to mix in. Stirring stick is stuck more than I thought and giant lump of cement goes flying out of the bowl onto me. I quickly run to the sink to wash me immediately, leaving the mixture to harden a little bit more. I dumped the mixture into the mold. The mixture is stuck in the bowl completely. I try and scrape the sides with the stirring stick as clumps drop into the mold in 4 inch chunks. I desperately try to flatten and smooth the cement into the mold while not using any bad words as Melly is standing next to me saying, "sorry Mommy, sorry Mommy".

3. Entire mold and bowl get thrown in the garbage, and Mommy takes out paints for Melly to do instead.