Friday, January 28, 2011

Sensory Play

Today was a laid back Friday but right before dinner I thought a little distraction was needed so I could cook in peace! All the girls were full of energy today and getting into trouble. After they dumped an entire bag of goldfish into dirty recycling containers, it was high time for momma to step in.
Soup was on the menu so a sensory bin soup seemed appropriate. Dry rice, black beans, and popcorn along with some cheap plastic magnetic letters. I was going to trash them since I never cared for cheap fridge magnets but they are perfect for fishing out of the sensory bin. I set up on our play mat and added some random tools including a magnetic fishing pole from a puzzle, toaster tongs, strainer scoop thingy, tweezers from a bug kit, etc.



They sat impatiently while I set up and took pictures.



Wiggles was amazed!



Sugar Bean kept expressing how much she LOVED her sensory bin!






They would of played all night but clean up was in order for dinner. Although I nearly had a canary when despite my pleas to keep it in the box or atleast on the mat, hubby pointed out beans clear across the room! Ah yes, our home is just a cozy preschool!



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Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Wool project

A bit off topic from our usual but I've been meaning to get this posted. Christmas eve it dawned on me that Wiggles didn't have a stocking! Her 1st Christmas stocking was being passed down to June Bug! So to the wool stash and I whipped up this. . .



I adore it! I obviously didn't have time to stitch her name all nice so fabric puffy paint was the trick.

I've got a great new spot at Palmerton Festival in September so I'm excited to fill it up with new designs. I'll be focusing on recycled wool. Partly because I love it and with the new regulations for selling childrens items, I'm going to have to stick with wool and other natural fibers. My head is full of ideas! Plus I always enjoy the challenge of building a new display! Oh I'm exicited and it's so far away!
Happy crafting!
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Whats for school today?

Another morning packed with fun activities. After calendar time we read about little "d" and Wiggles was wiggling so we brought out the stuffed felt letters. Sugar Bean wanted to make words so thats what we did.



Then we had fun building these adorable 3D wood puzzles, I picked up at Joann fabric for .50, Daddio was Sugar Beans assistant.















That was a perfect chance to break out the big map book and find where our animals lived!



Followed by Math U See



June Bug hung out trying to crawl.



We built some letters!






Some big and little letter matching from Letter of the Week curriculum.



Of course some play dough!









And some singing on the potty!



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Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Daddio is fun too!

So wonder what craziness the wee ones get into with Daddio?



Popping popcorn! Wow!



Pillow piles to bounce on!



Perfect chocolate chip cookies!



Everyone wants to play with Daddio!
Never underestimate the power of a fathers influence on their children. Somethings daddy's just do better!

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Thursday, January 20, 2011

Kiddos in the kitchen

With really no game plan today since Momma was sleep deprived from restless wee ones all night, I just went with the flow. Sometimes those are the days we have the most fun! My only goal was to get the kitchen clean which still isn't finished but atleast I can see the counter now!
Kiddos seemed to have the munchies today and I was feeling crazy so why not drag some snow inside! They really thought I was nuts when I let them prepare and eat Snow Ice Cream for lunch! For the recipe we used and instructions see fellow blogger. . . http://www.spearmintbaby.com/2011/01/snow-ice-cream.html
Sugar Bean made pink and Wiggles made green.






Then they enjoyed sharing and mixing their creations!



June bug wanted to join in too!



This evening they came across a ladybug and insisted we rescue her. They brought me their orange slices from snack time to feed lil lady bug.



They intently kept an eye on her all evening.

We received our education blocks in the mail last night we purchases from amazon and I printed up our first set of cards and had them ready for the girls this morning.



You can get the cards from http://www.EducationCubes.com/
The ones you see here go with the Letter of the Week Curriculum from our friend Erica at http://confessionsofahomeschooler.blogspot.com

Have fun learning!
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Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Pajama Day

We love pj days! For one less laundry for mommy and two who doesn't love hanging around in your snuggies! The "plan" today was to actually knock out some clutter after schooltime but of course the kiddos and the weather had other ideas. Schooltime started out fairly normal. . .



Then we got a wee bit sidetracked with some extended playtime with MUS blocks. All good!



Then since potty training is in full swing with Wiggles we spent every other moment sitting on the potty! And when I say every other moment I'm not joking!




Wiggles was very concerned when her potty was swept away and brought back empty! One of those, "all that work and ya took it away mommy?!" For the record it was a very successful potty morning. As in mommy accomplished nothing else!
Lunch and then naps while mommy went out to chop ice off the steps so Daddio doesn't break his neck when he comes home. Talk about beautiful! The ice encrusted trees and the sound of the rain was so peaceful! Call me crazy but I was totally in the moment.






Our bunting under the "play canopy" was frozen stiff.









June Bug had some mommy time alone!

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Monday, January 17, 2011

Epiphany

Sugar Bean is sitting here putting together her USA melissa & Doug puzzle when she suddenly has "epiphany" moment. "Hey North Dakota & South Dakota are both rectangles, mommy!"



Love those moments!

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Thursday, January 13, 2011

Total chaos!

Ever notice how most bloggers including myself always seem to show you the nice, neat, smooth parts of life? Ever wonder what we're really like? Afterall we're not like supernatural supermoms who sit back blog and control with complete composure, our lives! With my embarrassment on the line I'll show you what it's really like!
Mornings almost always involve some sort of meltdown by either a child or momma. It's everyone wants something the split second feet hit the floor. Wiggles cries for her cup, Sugar Bean repeatly announces her need for her favorite hero of the week or a demand for breakfast and lately her insistence on school time right away! I'm reaching for the coffee pot cringing and multitasking the demands at hand.
When I've established a sense of control, it's chores, diaper changes, and settling everyone into their day. Notice I say "sense" of control! We all know that's never the case!
The goal everyday is to get school time accomplished between breakfast and lunch. School time is mingled along with snacks and playtime. If we are having a cranky pants moment school is set aside until we can teach and learn willingly. Yes even Momma has cranky pants moments! After lunch it's naps! On a good day they go willingly and not so great days it requires chasing children back to bed many times and yelling "back in bed!" repeatedly! My goal is to grab a nap too but we all know that's not always the case. So I get done whatever I can or pass out for five minutes with June Bug.
When naps over it's playtime! No structured school time unless we are all in the mood. Painting or loud craziness are more the order of the afternoon!






Keep in mind Wiggles is being potty trained too. So repeated runs to the potty are the norm!



Sugar Bean wants school time or snack time constantly. Sometimes momma just wants to hide!



Wiggles is potty training her lil ones too!



Cleo stays clear of the Midday chaos by watching the birds outside, on top of the toy shelf.



No point in cleaning up!



The daily art work hangs from clothespin on the blinds. Hey where else? They make interesting curtains!
And so evening goes however the wind blows... Play, chores, dinner, more play, bedtime!
My house is never magazine worthy but it's happily lived in! It's a home that's on duty 24/7. Homeschooling takes dedication and a willingness to give all your time and energy into your wee ones. There's great moments and times when we all just want to runaway screaming. But it's our life, our home, and our chaos!

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Snow day!

Nothing is more gratifying (okay unless it involves feeding my selfish desires) than kids enjoying a snow day with Daddio! Yesterday was a blast for all of us! Six inches of snow on top of the previous two made for some great sledding. This was Wiggles first time and she loved it!
















Even the hens got out for a bit and Wiggles had a million questions for them! Lol!















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