Some days...

Many days we get out of the house.  Swim lessons, zoo class, preschool, playgroup, playdates, so many reasons to leave the house.  But some days, we stay home.  We stay in our pajamas, read books, and don't worry about getting out.  I like these days.

Sugar cookies fresh from the oven, waiting for decorating.  Dinner already cooking in the crockpot.

A door decorated with pumpkin and leaf faces, the product of our morning.

 The books we read, waiting for another reading.

 The fireplace keeping us warm and cozy, matching the feeling in our hearts.

Preschool!

Almost two weeks ago, Little Guy started preschool!  And not home school preschool- preschool at a school!

Little Guy actually started at the school last March, then was off for the summer.  They recently began the new school year.

For Little Guy's first formal school experience, we decided to go with a cooperative preschool.  That means that we have to volunteer in the classroom periodically (once about every two or three weeks), help on a school committee, and just generally support the school.  This is just perfect for me, because I want to be a part of his school experience, getting to know his teachers and fellow students.

It is also a play based preschool.  When he arrives each day, the students play on the playground.  They move inside and do an opening circle, then the students have time to play, explore, and learn.  There is nothing that the students have to do.  There are at most 16 students in his class with two teachers and one or two parent helpers.  At the end of the exploration time, they clean up, then have closing circle.  They invite the parents in to recap the day, then off we go!

Let me tell you, he LOVES it!  It has been great for him to interact with other children his age, and not just because his mommy knows their mommy.  It has also been great for him to interact with other adults, listening when adults give him directions, and learning how to do the basics of school.  This is what works for us, and we are all happy with our choice in preschools and how well he seems to be doing!

Cooking with Little Guy- Veggie Dip

For Little Guy's birthday back in June, Grandpa and Grandma B. gave him a cookbook called Mom and Me Cookbook: Have fun in the kitchen! by Annabel Karmel.  In this cookbook are some really fun recipes.  We finally had a chance to try them out.

The first one we tried was called "Avocado Frog Dip."  We made a trip to the grocery store specifically to get the ingredients we needed, such as an avocado, lemon, chives, a cucumber, and olives.  While I helped with the hard parts (including chopping up the tomato), Little Guy put most of it together on his own.

Mashing the avocado.

Stirring in the tomato and other ingredients.

The finished dip!

I think it turned out really cute!  He put the face together himself! And the verdict?

First taste!

He liked it!  He even tried cucumber sticks dipped in it, as well as a sugar snap pea, two vegetables that I cannot normally get him to eat!  This is definitely a make again recipe!

What have you made with your little one lately?

12 from 2014

Happy New Year!

Here is a quick review of our year in pictures!

January- All bundled up to ride his bike!

February- The beautiful Valentine's card Little Guy and Daddy made for me!

March- Napping in the car seat.

April- Happy Easter!

May- I completed my second ever 10K.

June- Little Guy turned 3!

July- Little Guy and mommy at swim lessons.

August- Hunting for bugs with Daddy at Bug Day.

September- Getting in a fire truck at Touch A Truck!

October- A family trip to the zoo!

November- Playing in the season's first snowfall!

December- Merry Christmas!

Here's to a wonderful 2015!

Airshow!

We live not too far from an Air Force Base, so a few weekends ago, we went to an airshow!  Now, Daddy and I both grew up with fathers in the Air Force, so we are no strangers to airshows.  However, this is the first one that we've gone to since we've been married, so it was also Little Guy's first! Knowing the airshow was coming up was one of the reasons I planned our preschool transportation unit when I did. 

If you've read this blog for a while, you may recall that a little over a year ago, Little Guy was in love with airplanes.  I wrote about it here and here, and his second birthday had an airplane theme!  After that, and three trips on airplanes, the interest started to dwindle.  Well, not anymore!  Airplane play is back in full swing at our house!

Little Guy had a really fun time at the airshow! We enjoyed watching many of the aerial demonstrations, but we also had a good time looking at the planes and other things that were on the ground.  Check out these pictures of what he did!

One of the first things he did was get to try on the mask and helmet that pilots use in jet planes! 

One of the cool things about the airshow was not only seeing the planes up close, but also talking to the pilots.  Here, Daddy and Little Guy were talking to this A-10 pilot.

Another plane we saw (and toured) was a KC-135.  This is the type of plane that can refuel other planes while in the air!  Or, as Little Guy likes to put it, its a big gas station in the sky.  He was talking to the pilot.

Not only were there airplanes there, but there were also hummers and helicopters.  Little Guy had a fun time trying these out!

One of the highlights of the day was watching the Thunderbirds.  This amazing group of F-16's did some spectacular tricks.  We had a great time watching them fly.

After they flew, the Thunderbird pilots were signing autographs.

At the end of the day, Little Guy was able to choose one toy airplane as a souvenir.  He chose a Thunderbird.  What a fun finish to our day!

Butterflies...A 3 year old's take

At our local zoo, there was a butterfly exhibit over the summer.  We went several times.  Little Guy always wanted to stay until a butterfly landed on him!  Recently, we took his camera.  Here is his perspective!

A Dinosaur Birthday Party!

This weekend we had a wonderful celebration in honor of Little Guy's 3rd birthday!  Since he has been enjoying the dinosaurs at the zoo so much, his party had a dinosaur theme!  I have been collecting ideas for this for about a month, and I'll admit that I had fun at the party!  Warning- there are a LOT of pictures in this post!

I made Little Guy's cake, in the shape of a dinosaur, of course!

To go along with the cake, we had cupcakes (iced with green) with cute little cupcake toppers. 

Other food at the party included Dinosaur Juice (Capri Suns), Dinosaur Nails (Bugles), and Herbivore Treats (a veggie tray).  The party was from 10-noon, so we also had chips and ordered sandwiches.

To lead the families to the parties, I cut out green dinosaur footprints and taped them on the sidewalk.  They were a fun touch!

 To keep these children entertained (10 children aged 3 and under, plus 2 helpers), I planned several games.  The first game we forgot to take pictures of:-(  We froze dinosaurs (from the dollar store) in red plastic cups.  As the children arrived, they got to choose a dinosaur, pull it out of the cup (in a block of ice) and add it to a kiddy pool.  Once the ice melted, they could get their dinosaur!  This was a huge hit.  Daddy found this game here.

 The next game was also great!  I ordered these little dinosaurs, no taller than 25 inches.  I buried them in sand boxes (plastic tubs about 2 feet by 3 feet).  The children needed to dig in the sand to find the dinosaurs.  Each child could find 6 dinosaurs.  I provided some plastic shovels and cultivators to help them dig.  We also passed out the goody bags, to help collect their dinosaurs.  Little Guy had used a dinosaur shaped cookie cutter to stamp dinosaurs onto the white paper sacks.
The children had a great time digging in the sand!  One little girl was so excited every time she found another dinosaur.  Some kids kept burying the ones they had found so they could find them again.  Another little girl stayed at the sand for almost the entire party!

 After digging in the sand, the children could choose a dinosaur mask.  There were 6 different masks to choose from.  These were hit or miss.  Some of the children loved the masks, and wore them for a while, while others put them on and took them right back off.

 The next game was pin the horn on the triceratops.  This was probably the least successful game, but it was still fun!

 After that we passed out little tubs of playdough and magnifying glasses.  The children could examine their dinosaurs with the magnifying glasses and make footprints in the playdough.

 After that it was time for food!  After gobbling up some yummy sandwiches, it was time for cake!  (Little Guy had been asking for at least half an hour when he could have some of the cake!)  Daddy lit the three candles and everyone sang "Happy Birthday!"  While we were singing, Little Guy had the biggest smile on his face!  He blew out his candles and had a yummy piece of the dinosaur!

 As we were giving out cake or cupcakes, I loved how some of the children chose which cupcake they would eat based one the dinosaur on the cake topper, not the cupcake itself!

Before we had cake, I asked Little Guy what he liked the best.  He said pin the horn on the triceratops.  I asked again after the cake, and he replied "The cake!"

 This was a really fun party!  We were so glad that many friends were able to come and help us celebrate!