Zubber

O and I recently made insects using Zubber. I bought the kit from WM for 2 dollars. We had fun making the insects, and O was impressed with and proud of her insects. Although we had a good time, I was glad that I only paid 2 dollars for the kit.

Putting Objects in a Clear Container

It doesn't get any simpler than this! I gave E a clear plastic container and a bunch of wooden Kapla blocks. She had a GREAT time putting the blocks in the container and dumping them back out again. She also enjoyed trying to put the lid on the container once it was full. Next week I'm going to give her a bunch of golf balls to put in the container. I know she's going to LOVE it!

E's Birthday Crown

I'm very happy with E's birthday crown and thought I'd share it here :)

I (with my mom's help...she did the top stitching) made E's birthday crown using wool blend felt (from Prairie Point Junction). I used the pattern and directions from The Creative Family to make the crown. To make the cake and candle, I drew the pattern on a piece of paper and cut it out. I traced around the pattern with disappearing ink onto the wool blend felt, and cut out the cake, icing, and candle. I attached them to the crown using fabric glue. This crown was surprisingly easy and fun to make!

Our Favorite Things

Since I am VERY frequently asked (in email) which toys and books I recommend for children and which books I recommend for parents, I decided to put up an Amazon widget of our favorite things (toys, books, dvds, cds, etc). The list of our favorite things is in the right sidebar of this blog, and everything on it is something that we own and like. I'll be adding more as I have time. Enjoy!

(oh, and the links are affiliate links!)

Never Underestimate The Baby!

On the day that I posted that E wasn't ready to put the popsicle sticks into a small opening in a cup, she took a rug to my mom, sat down, and started doing just that!

Look at that concentration! I love to watch my children when they are so focused on their tasks. I only videod her putting the 1st 3 popsicle sticks in the container, but she continued until they were ALL in the cup. She amazes me! I've learned 2 lessons from this...observe rather than assume and NEVER underestimate the baby!

Wee Squeak Shoes Review and a Giveaway

We love Wee Squeak Shoes, so we're hosting another review and giveaway! A representative from Wee Squeak Shoes sent this super cute pair of shoes to O a couple of months ago. She loves the shoes...they are very well made, comfortable, cute, and easy to put on and take off. One of the best things about them is that the squeaks are removeable! She can run around squeaking for a while, but we can take the squeaks out so she can wear the shoes to church, school, and the library. What fun!

Here are a few words about Wee Squeak Shoes from the company...

Wee Squeak Children’s Shoes are footwear that's fun to wear! Comfortable and stylish, these little shoes are great for any season. With a variety of styles and colors to choose from, these children's shoes are a great gift idea as well as a way to help children learn to walk properly without even realizing they're being taught. Traditional Mary Jane’s, along with a wide variety of boys sandals, children’s tennis shoes and girls sandals in several different colors and styles, Wee Squeak Shoes has a very diverse selection. We even have accessories to go with our “Wee Snap” shoes…clip on flowers to dress up the shoes, as well as Crystal Crown accessories in white or pink. These decorative additions to our Wee Snap line will put a sparkle in any girl’s eye when she sees them gracing her toes!

Wee Squeak shoes are designed for children and parents alike. Our shoes actually make a fun squeak sound as the child walks. A cushion in the heal squeezes air through a tiny nozzle making the squeak sound. For those occasions when the shoe needs to be silent, the squeaker can be removed very simply by an adult. Shoe sizes range from 3-12. We have a wide variety of shoes for boys and girls, and we have expanded our collection Fall 2010.

Leave a comment to enter the giveaway for a pair of shoes. US residents only, please. My random number generator (O) will choose a number on Friday night (September 24).

A Fun Party Activity and Snack

My mom and I helped a friend plan activities and snacks for her little girl's birthday party a couple of months ago, and one of the fun activities that we did was make a dirt and worms snack.

To make the snack, I put 5 or 6 oreo cookies in a ziploc bag and gave a bag to each child. I told the kids to smash the cookies any way that they could. They started off by smashing them in their hands and hitting the bags. They quickly realized that it was easier and more fun to stomp and jump on the bags. O and the birthday girl put their bags under a twister game mat and danced on them.

Once the cookies were crushed I put a handful of gummy worms in each bag and gave each child a spoon. They loved eating the tasty dirt and worms!

Peek-a-Boo House

E LOVES this peek-a-boo house flip toy! She opens the windows and says "cat" and barks when she sees the dog. She will play with this toy for a long time while strengthening her finger muscles and developing fine motor control. I bought this toy from a 2nd hand shop for about a dollar...it's made by Melissa and Doug.

Making Mini Pizzas

O, E, and I made mini pizzas last week using whole wheat sandwich thins, spaghetti sauce, and veggies.

To make the pizzas, we spread the one piece of the sandwich thin with olive oil and broiled it for a couple of minutes. Then O spread the spaghetti sauce on her pizza and added her veggies, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and cheese. We baked them at 350 until they were done (I didn't time it), and we all really enjoyed our yummy lunch.

E was so excited that I let her eat pizza, too. We used the leftover spaghetti sauce to make chicken parmesan...yum!

Fingerpainting Fun using Textured Trays

O and E had a great time fingerpainting this weekend using our textured fingerpainting trays. I squirted fingerpaint into the tray, and O squished it and spread it all around.


E was a little hesitant, and when she finally put her hand in the paint, she immediately tasted it. It must not have tasted very good because she only tasted it once. She seemed a little disturbed by having blue hands at first, but she relaxed after a couple of minutes.

After they spread the paint in the tray, we put a piece of white cardstock on the tray and pressed to make a print. This was a messy and fun activity that we'll be doing again soon.


The fingerpainting trays came from the Let's Explore shop (which is no longer open).

Dropping Popsicle Sticks Into a Container

Here's another one of E's favorite activities! This cup has a top with a small opening that is the perfect size for popsicle sticks. However, E is not ready to put the sticks in a small opening. I took the lid off, and she had a great time dropping the sticks in the cup. They make a pleasing "ting" when they hit the bottom. She LOVED this activity, and she kept putting the cup to her mouth to take a drink :)

She liked putting the lid back on the cup and then taking it off to dump the sticks out. What fun!

"On the Go" Nature Collage

O, E, and I had a great time taking nature walk to make an "on the go" nature collage last week. We took a glue stick and a rectangle cut from a cereal box outside with us. We glued various items to the rectangle as we found them.

This was a simple and fun activity that I'm sure we'll do again soon. Thanks to my friend, Rebecca, for this fun idea!!!

Guhguh's Famous Carrot Cake

My mom (with help from O) made a delicious carrot cake for E's 1st birthday party. After my mom decorated it with white icing, I put pictures from the different phases of E's first year around the edge of the cake with a #1 candle in the middle. O decorated the cake with blue icing and candy. We were pleased with the end result, and next year we'll let E help us decorate her cake.



Since my mom is locally famous for this delicious carrot cake, I thought I would share the recipe.


3 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups Canola oil
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup plain flour
3 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
6 tsp cinnamon
6 eggs
5 cups shredded carrots

Preheat oven to 350. Add sugar and canola oil together in a large mixing bowl. Add dry ingredients one at a time. Mix well by hand. Beat eggs with a whisk in a separate bowl adn add them to the mixture. Gently mix in the carrots. Divide the mixture into 3 9 inch layer pans, which have been sparayed heavily with BAker's Joy nonstick spray. Put in the oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Let the layers cool on cooling racks for 10 minutes. Gently remove from pans. Let layers cool a little more before icing.

Icing

1 large package low fat cream cheese (8 ounces)
1 stick of butter
1 box confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts

Enjoy!

Changes

I will miss my ballerina princess enjoying her Montessori homeschool because she's now attending a REAL Montessori school! She started school last Tuesday, and she loves it. I miss her so much, but I know that she is having a great time and is learning so much. Her class and all of the materials are amazing. Her teachers are great, and she loves them. I'm so happy that she is spending more time with other kids and has more opportunities for making friends.

This is how I amused myself after E, Elliott, and I got home from dropping O off at her first day of school :)


O refuses to tell me what she does at school if I ask her, but if I don't ask her, she'll gradually share details. She loves to wash dishes, and she was very excited about cleaning a mirror and shining shoes. She also said she did the spindle box, and she came home with several sheets from the metal insets.


This blog will be changing a little...although, not that much since I really haven't done much Montessori work with O in a few months (we had to move the Montessori shelf out to the garage since the baby was pulling up on it, and it's on casters and top heavy...also, we just don't do much "school" work in the summer since we spend most of our time outside on the beach and in the lake). I'll be posting about all of the various activities (mostly Montessori inspired) that I do with E, the art, nature, and cooking activities that I do with O in the afternoons, product reviews (about 4 coming up fairly soon along with a couple of giveaways), and handmade gifts (I'm WAY behind on this...I still haven't posted about a couple of handmade gifts from last Christmas).

Thanks for reading!

Happy 1st Birthday, E!

E's 1st birthday was last week...I can't believe that my baby is one! She started walking 2 days after that, so the past week has been a busy one with lots of changes (in more ways than one...more on that in another post). We are adjusting to our new normal and finding new rhythmn to our days. I apologize to the people who have emailed and commented with questions...I am weeks and weeks behind in responding, but I hope to catch up soon.

Here is E's birthday ring. I printed wallet sized pictures from 4 different phases of her first year and cut them out to use the birthday ring and her birthday cake. I love how it turned out!

I bought the birthday ring from The Wooden Wagon (before O's first birthday).