Just the kids and me

I got a little camera happy the other day while hanging out with the kids.  Here are some of my favorite snapshots.

 

 

     

No doubt, they are they best parts of Paul and Me!!

Simple Sensory Bin

Keeping up with a busy toddler is FULL TIME work.  We are always doing activities that are both fun and help to mold his little mind.  Today after Tanner asked (for the 50th time) to watch Thomas the Train I knew I had to whip something out of my mom bag of tricks. 

(Yes, I do let my children watch TV but in limited amounts and only specific programs- For a while ONLY Sesame street was allowed in our house but now my almost 2 year old has acquired a taste for Thomas and Bob the Builder)

I looked in my pantry and whipped up this sensory bin:

Supplies-

Big container (dish pan or large Rubbermaid work great)

Dry oatmeal (you could also use rice)

Assorted dry pasta (I used large ring noodles, and broken up spaghetti noodles)

A set of measuring spoons

a wooden skewer (with the point cut off)

2 cupcake wrappers

a few favorite toys

This kept Tanner busy for a good 45 minutes.  He scooped up the mixture, buried his toys, pretended they were eating,  and threaded the ring noodles onto the skewer.  I’ve seen fancier versions of sensory bins on Pinterest but honestly this works just as well as those snazzy glittery bins.  This also sweeps up in a jiffy.  When we were done, I got out my broom, Tanner got his and we cleaned up together.  This is a great activity to keep your toddler busy on rainy days or during this home-stretch of winter here in the Northland.

 

Happy playing!!

I do nerdy things like…

As you all know I stay home with my kids everyday and love it…but all that time alone with little people can drive a girl to do some crazy nerdy stuff.  I do nerdy things like…

 

-check facebook 45 times a day to see if my friends posted any new pictures of their kids/babies and/or pregnant bellies.

-DVR “The Bold and the Beautiful” to watch during naptime.

-buy coordinating outfits for my family to wear to functions like weddings, parties, etc.

- read my cookbooks over and over again looking at all the delicious food I aspire to make one day.

-make lists..for just about EVERYTHING

-think my star pajama pants (that I happened to get for $2.99 at the thrift store) are the most comfortable thing in the world.  So much so that I have to basically force myself to change out of them and put “real people” clothes on most days.

-do Zumba in my living room and think I am some sort of aspiring Latin Dancer.

-blog about the nerdy things I do

-keep my house abnormally clean for a mother of two very young children

-thinks a “fun day” to myself involves hitting up the local Hallmark and picking out cards for friends and relatives with upcoming birthdays.

-obsess slightly over what activities I should plan for T Fred’s 2nd birthday knowing full well that he will NOT remember it.

 

I’m a nerdy and proud!! 

What are your nerdy qualities?

Homemade Felt Board

Here is another project I have done recently that I LOVE!!  Tanner loves it too. It gives him a space to practice his letter and numbers, which he loves.  Seriously I know it is a little freaky to have a not-even two year old know his alphabet and count up to 12 but the kid just likes it…weird.  I have a feeling his interest might go down just a tad.  He recently discovered Thomas and Friends and is OBSESSED.  Maybe I can make some Thomas Felt shapes…I’ll try.  Note: I decided to free hand it but I am sure there are plenty of stencils and silhouettes that can be found online then traced onto felt.

Front :

Back: 

1 piece of foam board

1 large piece of black felt

many sheets of multi colored felt

Hot Glue

Clothes pins

baggies

 

Hours of fun for under $10.  I would say this is perfect for 2-5 year olds.  Depending on the age of the kids, you can make different cut outs.  So far I have just done the letters and the farm.  Some ideas I have in the works are: Dinosaurs, Dress the Boy, Food and utensils, Face and parts, Counting sets (ex.1 ball, 2 trees, 3 apples, etc) and Fish/Under the Sea.  As I add more, I will just glue more clothes pins on the back to store the sets of felt.  Cheap, homemade AND organized!!  Love love and LOVE.

I’m back…

Hey all, if there are any friends and family out there that still check this.  I have been a complete blog slacker and have been just busy living our life for the last two months.  Here’s a quick synopsis of what we have been doing.

 

Living.  Painting. Christmas laughs. HUGE HUGE new years bash. Cleaning up. Hay Rides.  Walks through the woods.  Playing in puddles (in January-strange).  Work. Night School.  Paul turned 30.  Birthday Party. Cleaning up.  Art Work. Letter and numbers.  Learning to eat big girl food.  Learning to take a bottle. Zumba.  Eating Healthy. Losing weight.  Cleaning my house…messing it up, cleaning again..you get the picture.  Homemade valentine’s. Baking.  Shopping.  Baths. Vacuuming.  Thinking about blogging.  Not blogging. Facebooking…LOTS of Facebooking. Texting. Date Nights. Getting spring Fever.  Planning a Vegas Vacation. Reading. Coloring. 2nd Birthday Party planning.  ECFE Class.  Having visitors. Playing.  Loving…and the list goes on.

 

So I figure you won’t be as mad as me if I offered up a peace offering.  I bought a new cook book FULL of great recipes to make with kids.  Thought I would share what I made today. 

Here is the cook book.  Got it at Barnes and Noble in the bargain row.  I LOVE IT!!  And it has lots of pictures which I love as well.

 

POWER PACKED PUMKIN POTS

If you like Pumpkin Pie you will love this.  It is fairly healthy too.  I reduced the amount of sugar I put in mine to make it a little healthier.

 

Ingredients-

1 can (15 oz) solid pack pumpkin

1 can (12oz) evaporated milk

3 eggs

1/2 cup sugar (i used about 1/4 cup)

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

Serve with Whipped cream (optional)

1- Preheat oven to 350.  Spray 6-8 (4oz) or 4 (7oz) ramekins with nonstick cooking spray

2- Combine pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and salt in a large bowl.  Whisk until thoroughly blended.

3-Pour into prepared custard cups; place in 9x13 baking pan.  Pour hot water into baking pan around cups to a depth of 1 inch.

4-Bake 1 hour.  Remove sups to cool.  Let stand for 30 minutes.  Refrigerate 1-2 hours or over night.  Serve with whipped cream if desired.

 

Seriously delish!!!!

 

I’m happy to be back.  And expect to hear more from us Nyquists up here in the Northwoods!!