Thursday, May 26, 2011

Time for Camp


Time to go away,
To have no worries,
Time to play,
It's time to go to camp!
 
Time to run,
Laugh and smile,
Explore and discover,
It's time to go to camp!

Late nights around the fire,
Roasting dogs and Smores.
Glow sticks and "glow" bugs,
It's time to go to camp!




 
 
Catching salamanders 
And frogs,
Watching birds and elk, too
Skipping on rocks and logs,
It's time to go to camp!


Oh, my poem could go on forever!  Nature walks, family talks, kids getting dirty and rising up early- it's time to go to camp!  I hope that you and your families have a wonderful weekend together-whether you will be going away or staying home to celebrate Memorial Weekend. Before I leave..... here are some links to some past posts about travel and nature!

Travel Games   Nature: Our Outdoor Classroom   Animal Tracks
Life at the Pond  Camp Pics  Nature Journals

See you next week!
Jen

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Wordless Wednesday: Groovy Girls!

PEACE

LOVE


AND.....

CHOCOLATE!








For more WW, be sure to visit 5 Minutes for Mom!
 
Happy WW! Jen

Monday, May 23, 2011

Things That Go-Birthday Party Ideas!





I love my new Thomas Train!
Little Man turned one in December, but without a computer, I wasn't able to share his Things That Go party with you!  So here I am sharing- better late than ever, right? We celebrated at home with family. He has lots of big cousins to spoil him! 




CAR THEMED CUPCAKES AND CHOO CHOO FAVORS





TRAIN DECORATION 

MORE THINGS THAT GO DECORATIONS

TRANSPORTATION BINGO was fun for the older kiddos!

MMMMM! SMASH cupcake

I like my new TRUCK!
What  a fun time!  HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY, LITTLE MAN!  My BIG 1 year old!

Slide and Find - TrucksAlso, one of little man's favorite books- perfect for the theme!

Enjoy your day,
Jen

Little Tikes Pirate Ship Giveaway!

Baby Loving Mama is sponsoring an AWESOME giveaway!  If  you have a toddler/preschooler at home, you have to enter!  She is giving away a Little Tikes Away Pirate Ship to one lucky reader! 

Features Include:
    
      • Pirate ship theme loaded with spinning features
      • Center mast is a constant-flow water fountain. Keep water moving with pump or by
         pouring water into the crows nest and watch everything spin
      • Spinners cause current in the ship which moves floating objects around
      • Aim and squirt water from the water cannon
      • Steering wheel spins and anchor raises and lowers by cranking the handle




So be sure to head on over to Baby Loving Mama and enter!


Isn't this an awesome giveaway?

Jen
 



Sunday, May 22, 2011

Happy Sunday!

 I hope you are having a fun day with your families!  Today we did some activities with the fruit of the spirit.  I posted over at my other blog: God's Shining Stars.  Check it out- The Fruit of the Spirit.


Take Care!
Jen

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Summer Bucket List!

Summer is just around the corner!  I'm looking forward to some summer fun with the kids.  I was visiting Superheroes and Princesses when I noticed that she had posted a great summer bucket list, so I decided to join in on the fun!


Outdoor Play
    Rainy Day Fun
    Day Trips
    • Go to the Wave pool and Water Park
    • Amusement Park
    • Zoo, Zoo, Zoo!
    • Ride on an incline up the mountain
    • Hiking and Fishing
    • State Parks
    Weekend Trips
    I'm sure I'll be seeing other great ideas on your blogs that we'll be doing instead, but it's great to have a list started that I can refer to for our summer fun activities!

    Do you have great ideas that you'd like to share? If so, be sure to stop by Little Wonders' Days for the Summer Bucket List Party and link your summer fun list!





    Photobucket 
    Here's to Happy Summer Days!!
    Jen

    Wednesday, May 18, 2011

    Wordless Wednesday: Fingerpainting, Maybe?

    He hasn't quite grasped the whole idea of a spoon yet! 
    We're working on it!
     Awww, Mom! I was just being CREATIVE!


    Enjoy your Wednesday!
    For more Wordless Wednesday, be sure to visit:

    Tuesday, May 17, 2011

    Time4Learning

    I've been invited to try Time4Learning for one month in exchange for a candid review. Time4Learning can be used for homeschool, afterschool and summer skill sharpening. Be sure to come back and read about my experience.


    Jen

    Books are for Kids!!



    of all ages!   


    At 16 months, little man already has his favorite books.  He even carries them over to his big sissies for them to read to him.  His Thomas the Train book titled Catch Me, Catch MeCatch Me, Catch Me! A Thomas the Tank Engine Story (Pictureback(R))! is his absolute favorite and he asks us to read it to him over and over.  The big smile on his face is sooo worth it!
    He also enjoys Peek a Who? by Nina Laden and 

         .Peek-A Who?Dr. Seuss's ABC (I Can Read It All By Myself Beginner Books)
    Dr. Suess's ABC.

    Actually, anything Dr. Suess makes him happy!  Maybe it's the rhyming patterns or the silly words. Who can resist a fiffer-feffer- feff? 
     
    What are your child's favorites?  
    Enjoy your day and Happy Reading!
    Jen

    Monday, May 16, 2011

    Go Back in Time

    Do your children or students love learning about people from the past? If you have a little history buff at home like I do, then they will absolutely love this project! Recently, Sunshine was assigned a Living History Museum Project.  She had to become Harriet Tubman.  Her requirements included writing a personal narrative, sharing real or created artifacts, and creating a poster that shows a time-line of Harriet's life, maps and pictures.
    My daughter worked so hard researching Tubman's life.  There were plenty of articles online, but what she enjoyed the most was reading books about her life.  She read Who was Harriet Tubman? by Yona Zeldis McDonough and Time for Kids: Harriet Tubman: A Woman of Courage.
    Who Was Harriet Tubman?Time For Kids: Harriet Tubman: A Woman of Courage

    Because it is a living museum, she had to dress as Harriet in a historical costume.  She could wear a costume or make her own.  We did both.  Luckily, I was asked to review a costume for Costume Discounters.  What perfect timing!  I searched on their site to pick out a costume that I could review that Sunshine could use for her project.  There was a large variety, but I wasn't able to find exactly what we needed.  So what do you do in the Creative and Curious Kids household? You improvise. We chose a Colonial Girl Costume and turned it into a Harriet Tubman costume.  It will get a lot of use, because now she wants to be a colonial girl for Halloween.  The costume is adorable and affordable.  The quality is good for the price that you are paying. The colonial costume retails for under $17.00 and is 100% polyester.  Below is a photo of the original costume from Costume Discounters.

    Sunshine modeling the costume


    And next, you'll see how we switched things up a bit to turn her into Harriet Tubman.
    Harriet Tubman with her Gospel Hymns
    Sunshine in character with project
    Now that big sis has a costume, of course Peanut wants one as well!  I'm looking at this one below for her for this fall.  I think she'd make an adorable Betsy Ross.


    Here's just a little bit more info. from their site:
    Cheap Halloween costumes is the name of the game here at Costume Discounters. Our Incredible Lowest Price Guarantee ensures you'll get exceptional value when you buy your costume for Halloween or other occassion. Costume Discounters brings you the latest and best costumes at the lowest prices...all year round.

    Well, this was wonderful experience for her.  I hope that you enjoyed reading about her project and my review.  


    Enjoy your day,
    Jen

    Disclosure: I was provided with a costume at no cost by Costume Discounters in order to give my own personal opinions on it. The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but were not influenced by the company or the free product provided.

    I am an affiliate for Amazon,therefore receive compensation if a product is purchased through an affiliate link.




    Sunday, May 15, 2011

    Down on the Farm!



    We had a wonderful day at the farm last week.  It was such a beautiful day and the kids just adored being able to see all of the baby animals.  Look how big my little man is getting??  He loved seeing the baby chicks and giggled as the baby goats tried to eat my shoes!  



                             The girls holding a baby duck- sooo sweet!

    After a hayride, the kids learned about growing strawberries.  We were given strawberry plants to grow in our own garden.  Mmmm!

    Fun/Interesting Resources:
    Kidzone: Down on the Farm Unit
    Enchanted Learning: Farm Crafts 
    Wondertime: Pick of the Season-Strawberries 
    TipJunkie: Gardening with Children 

    Children's Books:
    Charlotte's WebThe Berenstain Bears Down on the Farm (I Can Read Book 1)Duck on a BikeClick, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type
    Strawberry Girl 60th Anniversary Edition (Trophy Newbery)That's Not My Tractor (Touchy-Feely Board Books)The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear (Child's Play Library)Color Farm 

    Enjoy your day!
    Jen