Stuff We Like (and you might too!)

We just spent a morning at our local library which is always a highlight of our week. We get a lot of books. I don't really make a limit. Because Aidan is starting to read, I pick out a few easy reader books for him, some ballet books (a current obsession for Nora), and then story books that look fun to read to the kids (mostly Aidan). We have also started getting some comic books because Aidan loves looking at the pictures. My current favorite series I stumbled upon is only illustrations and no words, which is perfect for Aidan's age group.

"Owly" is a really fun picture/comic book and keeps Aidan very occupied. We have found them at our local library and there are several in the series.

Another thing we have recently stumbled upon is Your Story Hour and Adventures in Odyssey free broadcasts. Aidan loves listening to these stories. I thing Your Story Hour is a little more for his age and Adventures in Odyssey says it is for 8-12 year olds. I usually just look up what the story is about to see if it is something I think he'd be interested in. These last for about 1/2 an hour and have been a new part of our daily routine.

We have been doing a reading program through Looney Tunes Phonics that I purchased through LivingSocial in the fall. It was an excellent deal (just $20 for a lifetime membership-so I can use with all my children). I have thoroughly enjoyed going through this. At first, I was a little concerned that I had wasted my money, but I think it was just too much for Aidan at the time I purchased it. He is now on lesson 22 of 100 and starting to read simple sentences. I would definitely say this is something that you have to sit with your child and do together for them to get the full benefit. The cartoons they show during the lesson are pretty repetitive which is the downside, but Aidan doesn't seem to mind. Nora also enjoys sitting with us and watching. She sounds out the letters, but still doesn't have much letter recognition.

Our kids love Melissa and Doug toys and have recently been busy with the following:

The Melissa and Doug Pattern Blocks and Boards  has been a great tool for both of our children. Nora is already starting to follow the patterns at just 2 years old! This is a great way to talk about colors and shapes as well.

The Melissa and Doug Shapes Clock has been a great way to talk about time (with Aidan), shapes, colors, and numbers. There are so many things you can do with these toys to teach your kids while they have fun playing.

A wonderful resource that I think I shared once before (also found at our local library) is Unplugged Play.

This book is a wonderful resource full of ideas for games and imaginative play with your kids. I haven't had much time to spend on getting together some of these ideas, but I hope with my returning energy I will be able to again devote some time to planning ahead for activities.

Well, those are just a few of our favorite things around here at the moment. 

Keeping it Real

Yesterday was hard.

We are coming off a nearly 3 week vacation and back to the reality of life in South Carolina.

We were welcomed home by the smell of rotting potatoes (oops) and fire ant invasion in our kitchen. Our air conditioner was not working properly either, but THANK THE LORD started up finally and we had some cool air before the night was through.

With the ants taking over the kitchen, my oven sitting somewhere in the middle of the room (so we can track where the ants are coming from) and all the crap from packed bags overflowing with dirty laundry, toys, and other odds and ends from the last few weeks, my life feels a little crazy.

The kids were pushing my buttons. Throwing fits at every turn and I was not going to have it. This isn't Grandma's house anymore little people! There was a lot of disciplinary action and patience needed. Both of which I wanted to just throw to the wind and say "forget it, I'm too tired and busy."

It was a grueling day. And Seth was gone from 6:30ish in the morning until almost 9pm. So, I was on my own. Or at least that was my thought. I spent a lot of my day in a mental game of "just get through this" while gritting my teeth and wanting to scream half of the time that I was "done." But, I pushed and pushed and each hour passed (slowly, but moving in the right direction at least).

We got in the car to run some errands and I drove by a man holding a sign that said, "Jesus is Alive." Sometimes I look at those people and find myself thinking, "You can do more things for Jesus than stand in the freaking hot weather and hold a sign about him." I mean, seriously, don't people already know that, or at least if they don't then they may not really care. (I know, horrible glimpse into my thought life.) But, for some reason, when I saw the sign, my response was, "Thank you Jesus." I needed that. And if that man was standing out all day in the heat for me, then I was grateful. I was encouraged. I'm not doing this alone. Jesus is alive! He is with me. In that small moment I was encouraged and reminded of my need for Him.

I am so thankful that Jesus can send someone to stand in the heat and proclaim the truth for me. What a humbling thing to have Him reach out to my in the middle of my ugliness.

Painting the Driveway

I found a seriously cool, easy, safe, fun activity for the kids. And the best part about it was that I had everything I needed to whip this up and use on a day where we were needing a little something to get us through until dinnertime (if you know what I mean). Thank you, Pinterest.

All you need:

1 cup cornstarch
1 cup water
food coloring

I was a little concerned about the cleanup of the "paint" and whether it would stain clothes, but it was no big deal at all.

The cool thing was the way it dried was very smooth and and a fun texture. The kids liked touching their dried paintings and then had a really fun time washing it all away with the hose!

This really did keep them busy and I loved that it was stress free. I didn't worry about it getting on clothes, in mouths, etc...

Trying to be fun

We are back to being at home all day with no car because some things didn't work out with Seth's ride to work. So, we decided to make the best of it and have some outside water fun. I just let the kids get soaked in their clothes (Nora's wearing pj's) and they had a blast. They kept busy for a good hour before we came in for lunch. 

This pic cracks me up. The glasses are ridiculous and he kept saying, "one man in the tub."

Nora was having a blast playing with chalk

Aidan wearing goggles and yelling, "To infinity and beyond" as he ran up and down the driveway

Sweet tired baby who skipped her morning nap...looks like she will be down to taking just one nap before she turns a year. She loves to play more than she loves to sleep.

Unplugged Play

Found an awesome resource at the library last night: Unplugged Play. After two horrific days at home, I was relieved to find a book that has such great ideas for imaginary play.

Here is Aidan playing with his "grocery store":

I made some imaginary money, found some old gift cards to be used as credit cards, grabbed some food from the pantry and dumped it in a basket, set up his cash register, and grabbed a bag for him to put his purchases in...he's totally into it.
We also set up a doctor's office on our couch. All his stuffed animals are visiting the doctor and even getting stickers for being brave and getting their shots.
And guess what I am doing.... :)

I'm actually sitting near him and making a menu plan...and taking a little break to blog.