Artsy

Mounds of shaving cream and some paint

resulted in a fun activity that kept the children busy for awhile. They loved dribbling paint on the shaving cream and then swirling the paint around to make interesting designs however they wished.

When they were done, we pressed sheets of paper down over the top. When lifted off, the painted design stayed on, and the shaving cream dried clear!

It looks like very neat abstract art.

We will be definitely doing this again. It is messy, but something fun for little hands that need to be kept busy on a rainy day!

More Family Fun

More pictures from our adventure. As usual, I am not in any of them as I am generally the one behind the camera. :)

Spring Break Adventure

We just returned from the Wisconsin Dells! Kevin managed to actually get a few days off from work by some wonderful miracle, and Isaac was about to begin his week of spring break, so it was the perfect time to hit the road for a family trip! 

Excited trio posing by the car

It was the first opportunity we had to travel there. It was a good time of year, as we were able to snag a couple of nights at a very nice resort at a reduced rate. This particular resort would have been much more expensive and way  beyond our reach during peak tourism season! We got most everything ready the night before departure, then surprising ourselves, made our goal of setting out before 6 AM! We carried the kids out to the car still in their snugly pajamas, and brought along their favorite blankets so they could go back to sleep once we were officially on the way. Because of getting an early start, we were able to take our time. We stopped halfway there to change the kids into their everyday clothes and  have lunch at Culver's (of course--it's Wisconsin, after all!).

 The room we had to stay in was ideal...cozy fireplace, two bedrooms and even a completely furnished kitchenette so we could fix our own meals with groceries  brought from home.Not having to eat out for every meal saved us alot of money, and made it easier to incorporate some healthy foods into our diet.

The older kids had a blast at the massive water parks.They were very brave and adventurous and tried every slide they were old enough for! Would you believe that I did not get to snap one picture of them in the water?!? That was due to the fact that Ethan was terrified of the HUGE bucket that would dump out gallons and gallons of water from the air at regular intervals. To a little guy such as he, it was quite scary! He did wade a bit in the shallow end and splashed about for awhile, but otherwise clung to me like glue the whole time. That was okay, though, since I am not much of a water person--and did not relish the thought of climbing all those stairs and having to wait in line forever to go down one slide.
 With Kevin having to keep tabs on the others, and Ethan permanently on my hip, neither of us had a spare moment to whip out the camera during that time, unfortunately.

It was drizzly and cold when we were there, so we did not get a chance to explore much outside of the resort on foot, but did see many interesting things from the car window. It was overwhelming to see the many hotels, shops, and restaurants all compressed into a small area. It was confusing navigating around, this being our first time there and completely unfamiliar with the layout. We had a hard time locating a decent map! Many of the local attractions seemed to be tourist traps, so we steered clear of those for the most part.

On our way out, Kevin wanted to take the children on the famous Duck boat ride. It is a very neat tour of the area, partly on land following trails through the woods, partly in water beneath the amazing rock formations. Even though it was very windy, they enjoyed it, though they are obviously hiding their enthusiasm in the photo below!

Here is a peek at the rocks:

 It is a very beautiful part of the country, when you stop and see the pure, unspoiled natural aspect--apart from all the tourism hype. I would love to go back sometime, just to explore the out of doors more.

The kids were real troopers. All things considered, traveling with three young children is no easy feat, and to expect it to go perfectly would be unrealistic. You can plan and organize and have an idea of how you want things to go, but anyone that is a parent for very long knows that something unexpected is bound to  happen. Looking back over our past traveling, there has not been one trip since having our first child 6 years ago that has not included either vomit or a diaper explosion--or both. Really.

And this trip was no different. We were not far down the road on our trip out when one of our little ones (who will remain nameless!) was car sick all over the back seat. 

Yuck.

 But you know what? That's life with young children! You just have to roll with it, then move on. You can't let it get you down. Someday I know we will look back on those kinds of things and laugh! :) Children make life interesting and fun, even in those not-so-pleasant-I'd-rather-not-have-to-deal-with-this-now short term frustrations!

All in all, it was good trip, a fun mini vacation. A chance to get away and spend time together. It wasn't necessarily relaxing...but it was fun and welcome break after a long, cold winter.

But it is good to be home. Now it is time to unpack all of our junk, or I should say "gear",  and then tackle all this laundry that has built up.

I will have the weekend to get things back in order, at least. And then home school resumes again on Monday..it's back to regularly scheduled programming for us!

Winter is not forever

The calendar has indicated for over a week that spring is here. Today I actually believe it! We were able to venture outdoors after lunch. The weather is perfect: lots of bright sunshine and a mild breeze. The kids had so much fun today going outside. They are thrilled that enough snow has melted so that they can play on their little swing set.
Isaac kept saying, "Look, we can finally see the ground again!".

Living in a cold climate makes us appreciate the warmer seasons that much more. At times, winter does seem to last an eternity. The snow keeps on coming, and everyone is sick of shoveling--and shivering. The heating bills soar, and illnesses are passed back and forth.

A little hint of despair sets in. "Will this never end?"

Then suddenly, one day it does.

 The sun feels so much stronger, the air has a softer edge to it. Bird song fills our ears. Windows may be flung open with abandon.

And spring has arrived at last, full of hopeful promise.

 I am just itching to get my hands into the fresh earth once everything completely thaws! Emma spotted the first green leaves in our perennial flower beds today.It's a tantalizing hint of what is soon to come in the next few weeks!

We are looking forward to daily walks and treks to the park, and going outside without wearing a coat! Every day the remaining snow seems to shrink back a little bit more. Before too long, we should have a completely snow free yard. And then we will just wait for it to turn green and come alive with all of our lovely dandelions!

Ethan probably does not remember playing outside in an atmosphere that does not include snow because he was so young last spring and summer. It's so cute to see him running around and experiencing the outdoors as if for the first time. He always has a fit when we have to go in!

It sounds like the rest of the week should be beautiful weather also. Spring is officially here, and we are all breathing a collective sigh of happiness!

Dressing Up

What's a tired momma to do on a cold day when her children desperately need a diversion from bickering with each other and getting into things they should not?

Answer: drag out the "Dress Up Box"! Before long, creative costumes are quickly put together and imaginative play is underway.

It's funny how odd clothing items, hats, and various other accesories can keep them happily entertained...at least for awhile.

Lost In Space!

Ever since we began the school year last September, Isaac has been obsessed with all things space related. We began with learning the names of the planets, and it just sort of skyrocketed from there. We have covered asteroids, black holes, the Milky Way, constellations. We have read stories about the first step onto the moon. My mother gave Isaac his very own world globe so we can now study just how the earth functions in the Solar System.And yet, there is so much more to delve into, it feels like we have barely scratched the surface. There is plenty more to learn next year, too!

Right now,Isaac seems to be especially interested in the astronaut/space mission aspect of it all.

So, I scoured the Internet for a cool, space themed birthday cake idea to surprise him with. Wouldn't you know it, the Betty Crocker test kitchen came through for me yet again! On their website I found the recipe for a Space Shuttle Birthday Cake.

It was fairly easy to make. I followed the basic recipe with some little changes of my own. For example, I could not find star shaped candies or gummy things, so I just did free hand stars with gel icing and it turned out fine. I also chose to outline the entire thing with red string licorice for more emphasis. 

Isaac loved the cake, especially the added touch of placing the candles at the back--all ready for take off! It looked so neat when we lit them (though unfortunately I did not take a picture when they actually were burning.)

Views of his cake before cutting:

Top

Side

He had a great birthday. We kept it small and meaningful, had a few family members over, and enjoyed visiting together, playing some games with the children, and eating cake and ice cream. Among Isaac's gifts, fittingly enough, he even received books about space and a large floor puzzle that shows all of the planets!

Some more pictures of his special day:

Ethan drooling over the extra cupcakes we made!

Emma enjoying her cake with gusto!

The day after...finally able to play with balloons!

Birthdays are such fun!



Six

Today marks six years since I first became a mother when our oldest son, Isaac, entered the world.
 And our world has never been the same!

He has brought so much joy to my life. I did not imagine myself as a mother to boys, but am so glad that God saw fit to bless me with one as my first born.

Some days, our personalities mix like oil and water. But on other days, we find some sort of mutual understanding in a peaceful,middle place...a connection, a bond. Funny how that works!

Isaac has brought so much energy and enthusiasm to each day. He has made me more relaxed and spontaneous. He thinks of the most interesting questions to ask. He has an unquenchable thirst for learning new things.
He has a strong spirit, yet a soft heart.

These past years have flown by so quickly. It seems like he was just a tiny newborn that we were so nervous to bring home from the hospital. That stage did not last long, though. By four months old, he was mobile, and has not slowed down since!
I am kept constantly on my toes! But I wouldn't have it any other way.

Sometimes I look back on those baby days with yearning. I wish that I had realized how swiftly they would pass and how much of the "little stuff" that I would forget.

But I also look forward to the future, to spending many more days with my son, celebrating each milestone in life as it comes, and savoring the small things he does that make us smile.

Now he is such a big boy, reading fluently on his own, waiting impatiently to lose his first tooth, and even dreaming of being the youngest astronaut in history.

I have no idea just what plans that God has in store for him, but I will be there beside Isaac, encouraging, supporting, and loving him.

I am so thankful to have my wonderful son, challenging bumps in the road and all. He is a gift. A joy. A true blessing!

Happy birthday to you , Isaac.

I love you so much.

February Snapshots

 

Grating cheese for Mom

Sisterly love



I'm not sleepy!



Making personal size pizzas



Little Miss Personality



Hitting the books











Busy 'Lil Bakers

Here is Emma, all ready to bake this morning! She is my right hand helper in the kitchen. We often bake on Saturdays. Today we made Cherry Swirl Coffee Cake (from http://www.allrecipes.com/). We also ended up making a batch of brownies to freeze, but I didn't get a picture of them first! :)  

 Isaac decided to join us,too!

Here they are below, posing with the amazing finished product--yummy!

They cannot wait to surprise their Daddy with it. :)



Love is in the air!

Valentine's Day is almost here. For the past week at our house there has been a perpetual mess of glittery stuff, paper hearts, and well...PAPER everywhere. :) Isaac and Emma had so much fun crafting their own Valentine cards

and today we made a huge batch of sweetheart cookies

(Ethan just hung out with us and looked cute!)

We like to celebrate Valentine's Day mainly because it is neat to have a set aside day every year where you focus on appreciating those who you love. And not just romantically...it's been a good opportunity to use as teachable moments with the kids. We have been talking alot about what it means to have loving, kind behavior towards each other and also to stop and realize God's great love for us. I have challenged them every day to think of something nice to do for each member of our family.

And secondly, let's face it: winters are LONG in these parts. We need fun diversions during this cold season to distract us from the reality that it is still several weeks until spring truly arrives for good.  :)

Marshmallow Lollipops

Okay, I just had to share this super simple (but brilliant!)  idea, courtesy of the ladies that author the Coupons Are Great blog (www.couponsaregreat.net). You can find the specific directions there.

These "lollipops"  require only a few inexpensive ingredients, minimal effort,and are a quick, child-friendly little project to make anytime. All you need is regular size marshmallows, chocolate or almond bark for dipping them into, and a variety of colored sugar and sprinkles to decorate with. Seeing as Valentine's Day is just around the corner, we made ours with red and pink themed sprinkles. Isaac and Emma had no trouble poking a white lollipop stick into each  marshmallow. That was their favorite part, except for the taste testing, of course.

Even Ethan got in on the dipping action!

They all had so much fun making a huge sugary,sticky,chocolatey, mess all over the kitchen .

And they actually even went to bed on schedule after all that sugar!