July 17, 2013

Fun Stuff

We've been having so much fun together recently. Sometimes motherhood feels like such a chore, but the past week we've just been having a blast. I think some of it has to do with the stages my kids are at, they are getting very responsible, they're good helpers and cleaners, they have chores, and Claire requires a lot less effort now that she feeds herself and walks around. Claire is so much more a part of things which makes everyone happy. The other part of our fun recently has been the activities we've been doing. 

I found these space books for .60 each at a used kids store which is perfect because we've been WAY into space stuff. 

Claire loves her monkey, she likes to hold it up in front of her face and yell at it!

We read a book recently called "Virginia Wolf" about a girl who's sister is wolfish for a day. The sister cheers her up by painting "Bloomsberry" on their bedroom walls...so we created our own Bloomsberry. The kids love going down to the basement and adding more creatures to it.


Homeschooling has become part of our lives. I find a lot of satisfaction out of teaching the kids and creating fun activities that help them learn and grow. Here we're doing a constellation activity with numbers and letters. As we were working Will started to sing the ABC song and asked me to add more letters to his letter constellation page. When we were done he learned two more letters! Other than exercise this is the best way I can feel fulfilled, productive, responsible, and happy.

 The kids also wanted a turn drawing their own constellations on the back side of the ones I did for them. I love that they are taking initiative and that I can structure learning around what their current interests are (outer space).

We've also spent a LOT of time at the local swimming pool and helped Will overcome a lot of his fears of water. He's gotten so brave and I'm really proud of him.

July 15, 2013

Visitors

Our first July visitor was the tooth fairy! 



And then Julian, Ashley and their 4 kids came to visit. We had so much fun playing in the backyard and seeing some of the local sites. We went to Hop-to-It, Shoshone Falls, Dierkes Lake, Perrine Bridge, and the Centennial Park waterfall. There was also lots of trampoline, pool and slip and slide time in the backyard. The highlight for me was date night, when we went to Elevation on the edge of the canyon and practically ordered everything on their menu! The pictures below are at the waterfall where we all got soaked. It was the perfect way to spend a hot Sunday afternoon.



And Claire is cute: