Fall Fun

This past week we actually did have fun.  We had some really nice weather early in the week so we took advantage of it.  During the cold, snowy days of winter, we can double up on some lessons while we are stuck inside!

On Monday, after Live Lessons were done, we had to go to the laundry mat.  We then went to lunch and I surprised the kids with a trip to one of our favorite parks.  We only go to parks in the spring and fall when the weather isn't hot!  This wooden park is so much fun and to make it better, we unexpectedly ran into two other families from our home school group who have kids that my boys know well.

 Nathan running through the park. 

 Monkey Bar Fun 

 Brothers

 Joshua

 Nathan

On Tuesday, we took China to a dog wash station at a car wash.  She had gotten really sick on Monday and needed a bath worse than ever.  With the weather nicer, I figured that this was the time to check out this dog wash.  I was pretty impressed.  The water was warm, the sprayer had lots of soap options (just like a car wash!) and there was even a dryer.  It was all going great until I started the dryer.  My arthritic dog did a backflip out of the bathtub and landed on her feet.  My heart about did a backflip out of my chest!  Geesh China :-) 

We love our sweet pooch!! 

On Wednesday we had the opportunity to meet with my brother, Kel and sister-in-law Debby as they were passing by heading to Ohio.  It's a rare treat, since they live in Brazil, to get to share coffee together so we really enjoyed the visit.  

 The boys love their Aunt and Uncle especially because they speak Portugese :-) 

We did actually get some school work done too.  I've figured out that how I currently have the school day laid out is not working.  So I'm making some changes which will roll out the first week in November.  I'd do it now but we have this week to get through and then we have a week off.  Instead, my goal is to just finish their lessons by the end of the week!!  

 This board keeps me sane.  It lists their Live Lesson Times, Be-Weekly call dates, and due dates for special assigments.  Granted, I just remembered at 9:35 pm on Sunday that Nate was supposed to record a book this weekend. Oops!  We will work on that first thing Monday morning!

Nate was working on some school work but did not want his picture taken! 

Thursday we spent at Thursday school and Friday, we had errands to run and Nana came over for a couple of days!  It was an extremely busy week with things like swim lessons and AWANA too.  

But . . .we had fun! :-) 

Fall Fun - October 3-9, 2016

Do you know what I realized as I was writing this post?  I didn't take a single photo.  I'm still trying to get into a better flow with our day.  I feel like we are literally tied to the table from 9:00-2:00 and I don't like it.  So, here's a bullet list of what we did this past week:

* Monday = School and swimming.  The boys truely love swimming so I plan on trying to keep that going for now.  I finally have a new bathing suit ordered so we might fit in some free swim time after their lessons in the coming weeks. We had a treat too as my in-laws stopped by inbetween dinner and when we left for swimming.

* Tuesday = School. That's it.  Just school

* Wednesday = School and AWANA.  Darryl had practice so it was just the boys and I so we treated ourselves to dinner before I had to take them to AWANA.

* Thursday = Thursday School Co-Op.  This day is busy and tiring.  The boys love their classes (especially their Art Class) Darryl was also home today but was running to Dentist and Doctor Appointments.

* Friday - The boys have TKD and then my mom came over for the afternoon/evening.  We enjoyed dinner and just family time.

Our weekend was much quieter then the last few.  The boys and I went to the store to window shop for their birthday's and Christmas.  This is a great way for me to see what they are really interested in and I'm always surprised by what they pick verses what I would have picked for them. We also enjoyed dinner at our favorite Mexican resturant followed by ice cream :-)

Fall Fun - School, Home Depot, and Airplanes

Like my summer "series" about our weekly activities, I thought it would be fun to share some of what we do each week.

This past week (Sept 26-Oct 2) we really focused hard on school.  We've had a lot of interruptions during the first three weeks - both planned and unplanned - so we needed to catch up and get back on track.  Our basic schedule right now looks like this:
Monday - Wednesday - We hit lessons hard, doubling up on subjects like Math and Reading.

Thursday - Thursday School (Co-Cop) in the morning; Educational Technology in the afternoon (this is a fun lesson where they get to play on the computer)

Friday - In the morning we catch up on anything we didn't get done and do art.  Nate also has a Live Lesson.  The afternoon is Tae Kwon Do.

Even with the busy schedule, we still manage to find a little fun too.

On Monday nights the boys have swim lessons.  This is my view for about an hour every Monday night.  Once I replace my bathing suits that fell apart, we might even stay for open swim after this just so I can get into the pool and not just sit beside it!

 During one of Nate's science lessons this week, he and I had to go outside and observe a plant (Practicing the scientific method) As we were talking about what the plant looked, felt and smelled like, Nate caught sight of the biggest catipillar I've ever seen.  Because I'm a freakazoid about poisenous things, we looked it up to make sure it was safe (and it was) and our science lesson took a turn.  Both boys enjoyed watching this guy crawl and, yes, poop.

 Just love this candid shot.  And yes, Josh is still in PJ's.  It's a battle every. single. day.

 This photo doesn't do it justice - it was about three inches long.

To add to our science lessons of the day - Josh snapped this photo of a cloud he thought was just amazing.

 We ended our week with some fun too.  Being the first Saturday of the month, Home Depot hosts their kids workshops.  These workshops were something I reserved for my dad when it worked out for him to take them so it was a little bit emotional taking them myself.  Nate said, as we pulled into the parking lot, "Mom, I have some tears in my eyes trying to come out."  Then as we worked on building their fire trucks they both talked about how much Papa taught them about building.

After enjoying lunch at Olive Garden (Nate's favorite place) we headed to the Airport to the Observation Park to see the airplanes.  We hit the motherload too - I think we saw a good 10 planes land and take off.  These cuties just had a blast running around and watching planes.

Family Fun - Fall Festivities

Last Saturday we did something we haven't done in, well over a year.  What was it?  We planned a really fun day as the family that did not involve a doctor's appointment or x-ray appointment.  Instead, it was just some fun together. 

 Our first stop was a local fall festival that I just happened to read about on Facebook.  One of the key draws was that there would be LOTS of bounce houses and that is something the boys love.  We were not disappointed.  We decided toe at lunch there too and, quite honestly, we had the best street tacos we've ever eaten.  I WISH I could have eaten more of them but, well, I couldn't HA!  I also got a Cider Slushy - talk about near perfection!  So, it just so happened that Saturday was 80 degrees so we also had to deal with . . .BEES!  Uuugg!  They were literally swarming the food trucks and then followed us with our food.  Nothing like fighting a bunch of bees for your tacos! 

 We had to take a break in the shade - those houses are HOT and the boys were bouncing like crazy! 

 I love my boys and love seeing them all hiking down the sidewalk! 

 Josh saw a dunk tank and really wanted to try it out.  He looked so cute standing there.  No, he didn't get a dunk but give him a year and I think he will (He's very excited about T-Ball in the spring!)

 Despite the bees, it really was a beautiful day.  Once we left the fair, we stopped at McDonald's (Josh's suggestion) to use the rest room and get something to drink.  The one we stopped at did not have the A/C on so it was HOT and we had to wait 20 minutes for Nate's lunch (Chicken and Fries of Course) since he didn't eat anything at the fair.  Holy cow!  It was just crazy but we all enjoyed a nice cold drink after being outside for a few hours.

 We took the back roads from the fair to the local farmstand where we have enjoyed fun fall activities in the past.  The colors are just changing around here so we got to see some beautiful trees.  The first place the boys played was the big "Corn Box".  It's actually a great idea and lot easier to clean up than sand! 

 I loved all of the rows of flowers - this is just one shot I got.  I think I want to print and frame some of these for my kitchen!!! (Or some room in my house!)

 There is also a big slide made out of huge tubing.  It's fun to listen to the boys as they slide down the bumps.

 We then went through the corn maze.  This was a first for the boys to really enjoy.  They LOVED looking for corn on the ground until I told them that three ears was enough HA!  Then they got the idea of trying to find our way out.  Nate loved being the leader; he and I would go one way and Darryl and Josh another but it wouldn't take Josh long to "need to find mom and Nate".  We did finally find our way out (obviously) but only because Darryl was tall enough to see the Flag!!

As we were walking back from the maze the boys saw a Hayride and wanted to go.  Darryl decided he should sit this one out and, let me tell you, it was a good thing!  It was by far the best Hayride ever thanks to one awesome driver who had fun going down the big hills.  We were all screaming just a little bit!  We had fun looking for the scarecrows that were hidden along the ride and got to see fields and fields of pumpkins.  No, we did not buy pumpkins yet - we have two growing in our garden.  We told the boys we were wait a few more weeks and, if they don't get orange(r) then we would come back and pick out a few (Who are we kidding - we will probably still go back and pick out a few!)

We ended our fun time with Cider and Donuts.  Yummy!  We sat at a picnic table and enjoyed it right there and then let the boys play in the corn box a little longer. 

Some Simple Fall Decorations to make

I've been trying to figure out recently why I don't get nearly the same amount of things done that I used to get done.  I finally figured  it out.  My kids don't take naps.  There was a fairly short period of time where both boys went down for a two hour nap (at LEAST that long) at the exact same time which meant I had two hours to work on crafts, scrapbook, work in the yard or, well, just sit outside and read (and get a tan!).  Now that just doesn't happen.  They boys are almost to a stage now where I can work on crafts and they don't try to take over . .. almost but not quite.  :-) 

So, for this first installment of "Make it Monday" I thought I would share two very simple Fall Crafts I made several years ago.  They are still two of my favorite decorations to put out at this time of they year so even though they are simple, I still love them!

 The mason jar Jack-o-Lantern's are so adorable and so easy to make!  All you need is a few canning jars of varying sizes, some spray paint, Ribbon or Raffia, and Glad "Stick and Seal".

Very simply, cut out the shapes you need from the press and seal and stick them onto the mason jars.  Use spray paint to paint the entire outside of the jar.  Once dry, remove the press and seal pieces.  Tie ribbon or raffia around the neck of the jar.  Feel free to add tealights or electric candles inside the jar for added effect. 

The wood block pumpkins are beyond easy.  Just cut some 2x4 (or any wood in the scrap pile that is thick enough to stand up on its own).  Spray paint the wood orange, cut off some small tree limbs and hot glue to the top of the wood and add some raffia for something extra.  Super cute and so very easy!

10 Reasons I Love Fall

After all of my complaining about the horrible, hot, awful summer, I thought I would share how much I love this time of year.  It makes me happy :-)

10.  The weather - it is cool and crisp.  I love both the sunny days where the sky is crystal clear blue and the gray, drizzly days that only happen in fall.  The dark grey clouds that hit of snow storms to come are just amazing.

9. Sweatshirts and Jeans.  I love being able to where sweatshirts, jeans, comfy slipper socks, and a sweat jacket without worry about getting hot.

8. Comfort Food - We have been enjoying comfort food - things I have not made since . .March (because it was in the 80's here since March!) Chicken and Dumplings, Lasagna, Meatloaf, and other soups are the things that we are loving now.  They heat up the kitchen and make the house smell great!

7.  Hot Chocolate and Mocha's! - Finally, instead of drinking my fake coffee (I.e. Pepsi in a coffee cup on ice) I can make Hot Chocolate and Tassimo Mocha's along with a few Caramel Mocha's from McDonalds, and yes, the wonderful Salted Caramel Mocha from Starbucks.

6. Pumpkins and Apples - I am a huge fan of things made with apples and pumpkin.  We've already enjoyed some apple crisp and I have more apple desserts on the menu soon.  Not to mention our pumpkin recipes that will be coming soon!

5.  The Colors - there is nothing like Michigan colors and this year is incredible.  The weather has been the perfect mix making for intense colors.

4. The Smell - I love the smell of burning leaves that happens in the fall.  As people rake, play, and burn leaves it just fills the air with the smell of . .. .fall.  Plus everything smells so crisp.  There is no humidity making things stink - it is just fresh, clean air.

3. Football!!! - Yes, we love Football.  The more the better.

2.  Orchards - I love going to orchards and pumpkin patches.  The activities, hayrides, corn mazes, fresh apple cider and orchard donuts are fantastic.

1. Looking forward - To what, you ask? Well birthdays (my kids), Thanksgiving, Christmas, snow, at least one good blizzard, snowmen and more.  Fall is just the beginning of my favorite time of year!

Polka Dot Pumpkins

Today, on this perfectly fine fall day, I decided it was time to make some Polka Dot Pumpkins but first, we needed to really get into the fall spirit so we did this:

Josh and Nate both had a ton of fun playing in the leaves at a local park . . and yes, Nate wanted to eat every single one!

Once we got home and both boys went down for naps I went to work on my polka dot pumpkins

First, you need to get three different colored pumpkins, at least - you could get as many colors as you would like!

Here are my three lovely pumpkins!  I thought it would be easy to find these - it wasn't.  The place we went to, though, had "millions" of odd colors and weird shapes so I plan on getting more next year!

You will also need a very good apple corer.  And maybe a mallet if the pumpkins are really tough!

Use the apple corer to "core" the pumpkins, saving the piece that comes out.

Than use a different color "core" to fill in the hole.

When you are all done, they will look something like this :-)  Aren't they pretty? 

Just a different way to add to your decoration for fall!  Speaking of decorating - I'm working on my last item for my porch for this fall; than I'll give you the "Grand display" (ok maybe not that grand but it does look pretty nice!)