Cool website

I have been trying to do schooling with my kids at home.  Tanner likes doing other things at home which is nice because kindergarten right now is just reviewing things for him.  I'm not really great at it but I found a website that I like.  You can print out the things that are applicable to your kids rather than buying a whole book and not liking half of it.  Anyway it is http://www.kidslearningstation.com/
When I do think about or decide to do school time with my kids it has something for all of them which I like because them I'm not searching forever!

Go Outside!

Brennen is still pretty little but now that he can walk and it's nice outside I make a point to go out every day. I think even in winter if you bundle the kids up it's great for them to be outside and I know my little boy just LOVES it. During the hot months this summer I've waited until after dinner when it's a little cooler and since Dad works late it's usually just Brennen and I and we go for a walk and then play at the playground. Sometimes I'll invite another mom friend to go with me and it's a good opportunity for me to get some adult interaction! :) There are a lot of nice parks here and the big ones have jogging paths so I'll even jog sometimes and then let Brennen run around. There's also a nice bike path down by the river and I love to go there. We also go camping, fishing, hiking, and picnicking in the mountains as a family. I know I only have one child but I taught school before I had him and it seems to me that kids are just happier when they're not cooped up inside all day.

I was going to post some pictures of us outside but there were just way too many to choose from so I'll just post this one of Brennen trying to escape from the stroller on one of our walks.





Sometimes not a lot

I have recently returned to stay-at-home mommyhood! Hooray! I love it! Today Ashton and I just hung around the house and played a little playdoh and read a few books and I watched him play with legos and took his picture. Some times those days are the ones we cherish most. So for my first contribution to this blog that's what I've done. Here are some pictures of the little man concentrating his heart out on building his legos!

Bounce!!

We had a lot of fun at Bounce yesterday.  It is a place with a bunch of blow up bounce toys.  It’s a lot of fun and the kids really enjoy it!  Most of the pictures can be found on my other blog:  http://crazymomsarethebest.blogspot.com

Here are a couple that are a little blurry but you get the picture.

Discovery Center of Idaho

Friday we took the kids to the Discovery Center of Idaho.  There were TONS of exhibits and it was all hands on stuff.  The kids really enjoyed it.  I think they will like it more when they can do the things themselves rather than having mommy and daddy do it for them, but it was a good time out with the kids having fun with each other.  Of course like a dork, I forgot my camera, but next time hopefully I’ll remember.

Blocks

I found these really great blocks online and decided that it would be a fun way to get the kids to help out with dishes and also to get them to do things besides watching TV.

These are the chore dice.

These were called the I’m Bored dice.

I’m really excited about these.  I painted them myself and attached the vinyl.  It was actually a lot of fun and I think kids will actually enjoy doing this.

To the Library we Go

Yesterday I had decided to take the kids to the library.  Usually this brings a lot of stress to me, because the kids are never really that good at the library.  They pull a bunch of books off the shelves and try to check out every movie they see.  I was prepared for the worst, and just told myself to relax.  After I finally did relax, I enjoyed reading a bunch of books to the kids and helping them pick out a few to read.  I was able to find some books on tape to put on my iPod so that I can listen to them while I’m cleaning.  They were able to use the stencils that they had and play with some other toys.  We spent over an hour at the library (our personal record) and came home feeling really good about getting out of the house and doing something together that we were all able to enjoy.

Music and Jam

We actually did some music stuff one day.  I have a nice piano that has a recorder on it and it plays on it's own.  The kids are always asking me to play certain songs for them over and over again, so I recorder those and then let them dance away.  It's fun to watch them dance rather than playing the piano, but that part is fun too.  That way they are right by me and having fun rather than watching TV or playing video games.

I also had them help me make jam.  Not really help.  They just watched, but that was because I didn't want a huge sticky mess.  They did help me make pumpkin rolls yesterday and they really enjoy that when I let them help.  It's fun for me as well, but I very rarely let them help because for some reason I'm always in a hurry.  A lot of the problems that I'm having are because of that.  I just need to slow down and spend time with them.

Singing!

Yay! I’m so excited about this blog! My awesome sister, Christena, started it and I’m excited to read it and write in it. I don’t really feel like I’m going to have very much good input because I only have one child and he’s only 8 months old. BUT I guess I have a couple things to share.

I absolutely love music! Especially singing and playing the piano. I got a degree in music education and love teaching music and being involved in it so it seems like I would naturally just sing to my kids right?

Wrong.

When my baby boy was first born he was having trouble eating so the at-home care nurse told me to sing to him to help him to relax while he was eating and it just felt awkward at first. I think part of it was that she was there and I didn’t want to sing in front of her.

But as time went on I realized I was making up a lot of silly little songs just perfect for diaper changes, feedings, and bedtime but I was singing in a silly voice and the words were equally silly but the baby seemed to respond and he’d quiet down, listen, and smile when I’d sing.

So now I sing to him regularly, especially while I’m trying to shovel bites of veggies down his throat and at bedtime. Tonight he was in an especially hyper mood after his bath so I started using my “trained” singing voice and sang real life songs (you know, ones that someone else already came up with) that were soothing and more low-key. He stopped wriggling and just looked at me as I sang and got little smiles on his face. It was such a special moment and I felt so close to my little guy.

Flash Cards

Well I’ve noticed that my twins are lacking in the colors, shapes and numbers department.  I decided to make flash cards.  Since my husband is in school, we have just the basics.  You could make much nicer flash cards.  A little disclaimer here, I’m not an artist and have never claimed to be one.  Luckily my girls think that it’s good.  They helped me make the flash cards that we can use to learn and have some fun with.

First I just did a little table on the computer and printed it off.

 

You can use as many numbers as you want.  Then I cut them out.

After that I put the scissors away because I had two little helpers that don’t know how to use the scissors yet.  Then I got a glue stick and some index cards.

As you can see, it’s not hard to do and I had a helper that wanted to be in the pictures.

In order to better utilize the flash cards, I decided to draw shapes on the back and color them different colors.  This way we have one set of flash cards for numbers, colors and shapes.

We had a lot of fun doing these together.  We were able to spend time with each other as well as make something that we can use everyday.

You’re Going to Miss This

I was listening to the radio on the way to take my son to preschool this afternoon.  The song called “You’re Gonna Miss This” by Trace Atkins came on.  The last verse made me choke up a little even though I’ve heard it a thousand times before.  I took it a different way than what is meant in the song.  I thought that if I keep going down the path that we are going right now, I’m going to miss my children growing up.  I know I’ll miss them when they grow up, but I need to be a bigger part of their lives now while I have the chance.

Starting Anew

I was originally going to start a new blog to help me serve others.  I was going to list the things that I did that day and figure out what more I could do.  As I’ve thought about it, I’ve realized that as a stay at home mom my greatest service would be to my children and my husband.
That being said, I’ve noticed that as my children are getting older that I leave them to their own devices most of the day.  When the house is nice and clean, I mostly make them stay in the TV room and watch movies or cartoons most of the day in order to keep it clean.  It has been bothering me quite a bit lately.  My girls tend to act out more on the days that they receive little attention from me.
Therefore, I decided to change this blog to helping myself and maybe others find fun things to do with their children to make everyone’s life more enjoyable and to create an environment where kids can thrive.  Ideas are greatly appreciated.  I'm going to try and post everyday something new that we did together.