We did it! 17 years of wedded adventures.

These gorgeous roses were delivered to our home for our 17th wedding anniversary. Even though I am turning 40 years old this year, it doesn't seem possible that we have been married for 17 years. It seems really strange that it has been that long.
These red roses are gorgeous. They are full and a deep red. 17 long stem roses are an amazing site. Lane cried because Andrew didn't get her any flowers but it helped when I promised to share the flowers with her.
Andrew and I shared our first apartment in Minneapolis in 1992. Six friends rented three other one bedroom apartments in the same building. It was a lot of fun to live near friends and I have a lot of great memories from that year.
Next to our apartment lived Matt and Cori. Cori is an talented artist and we have always admired her talent and skill. When I saw a lighthouse painting for sale on her site, I had to get it for our anniversary. It reminds me of all the lighthouses we've seen together. We used to live only a few miles from a lighthouse and we've climbed that thing several times.

We weren't able to get a babysitter for our anniversary but we ended up at a nice restaurant in Vero Beach with the kids. We sat looking at the beach, watching the waves crash. The kids were wonderfully behaved and the food was excellent.
The waitress set a tray of dessert down next to Lane for the table next to us. She honestly thought the entire tray was for her. She also charmed two older couples sit near us and told them that she was full up to her hair. They each told her how full they were and someone mentioned it is too bad she isn't coming out of her shell. She has a lot of personality in such a little body.

Alex's 6 year appointment

Alexander turned six years old August 9th of 2012. I took him to his wellness appointment yesterday. Yes, six months past his birthday. I'm hanging my head in shame because I've become one of *those* parents.
When the children were younger, I could not believe that parents were late for wellness appointments. Before I had children, I was only late for dental and annual exams if we couldn't afford them. Surely, I wouldn't miss wellness and annual appointments for my children.
Well, I made before he was 6 years and 7 months. Sigh.. that doesn't sound any better. Okay, I've become a slacker because in physical terms he's growing and developing fine.
I do not have the lack of financial means excuse because the wellness appointment is covered completely on our insurance plan.
We arrived early for our 11 am appointment. We were thirty minutes early. It wasn't a big deal because I had a phone with games and a charger. Andrew had the other two children and we had Alex's DS with a cool math game. Thirty minutes was more than manageable.
We were called into the room a little after 12. We saw the doctor a few minutes before 12:30. Alex was frustrated with the wait and I told him that it was fine because we got to play lots of games including tic-tac-toe and hangman.
When you're bored at the doctor's office, pull out a pen and start writing on the paper on the exam table. It's kind of fun when the nurse or doctor come in because they aren't expecting writing all over the paper. Their expression is priceless.
Alex proceeded to tell the doctor that the wait was ridiculously long. Several times. I honestly wanted the ground to swallow me whole. The doctor replied by telling him, "Okay, buddy, I get your point." Eventually the doctor apologized and explained why we had to wait an hour and a half past our appointment time.
The appointment didn't last long. Alex's former umbilical hernia is now classified as a type of defect. If he gains a lot of belly weight as an adult it will cause a problem but otherwise it shouldn't be a problem for Alex. We will keep an eye on it and speak to a surgeon again if it causes him any pain in the future but it's unlikely.
Alex weighs 46 lbs and he's 46 inches tall. He is just under average for his age at this point in time.
We discussed having a "do over" year in school next year. Alex is doing fine to outstanding in all of his subjects but he is less mature than his classmates and having issues with socialization. Alex has cried to us about not wanting to go to second grade next year because "he's not ready." Alex is almost a full year behind some of his classmates and his doctor thinks it's fine if he stays in first grade another year to gain confidence and maturity. Since Alex's child development dr, pediatrician, and teacher have all made indications that it could be in his best interest, I think we will have a first grader again next year. And that is okay with me and Andrew.
As we left the appointment, Alex turned to the doctor and said, "I'm not okay with that fast appointment after that ridiculous wait."

Bead Sun Catcher

Gabriel likes beads. The best par is that he likes the inexpensive dollar store beads so I don't mind if he loses them or uses a ton for creative play. I will admit though, that the beads are a pain to clean up when strewn across the tile floor and I need to vacumm. Oh well.
I saw melted bead sun catchers on this site: http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=185741.0#axzz2OspZW1B5

I looked up she made these cute crafts and they are easy peasy! (lemon squeezy) I showed Gabriel and he wanted to make one too.
I preheated the oven to 400 degrees. We pulled out the round cake pan the canister of beads. Gabriel spread the beads in the cake pan so they were only one layer thick. He wanted to use all of the colors rather than choose certain colors.



This is an interesting thing for him to do because he is very color orientated and usually prefers only one or two colors.
We cooked the beads for about half an hour. When it was done, we let it cool for a little while and popped it out of the pan. We had a couple natural holes from the position of the beads melting so I don't have to drill any holes. I just have to add some fishing line and hang it.
It was a neat craft to do on a chilly Spring Break morning.

Giggling hand dryer

I don't have much to say about the photos I want to share. However it's often the silly, quirky things that remind me how precious childhood is - how important each and every day is with my children.
The typical drama and crying easily has begun for Lane. I haven't figured out what triggers these moments but I am trying so life can be easier for both of us.
I accidentally got soap and water on her arm. She was immediately upset by this terrible misdeed. I guided her to hand dryer and it didn't take long for me to hear Gabriel and Lane in a fit of giggles.
It was such a pure childhood innocence. Hot air blowing on their hair and skin made them genuinely happy. It truly is those little moments in life that will take our breath away

Dem Bones, dem bones..

Lane and Gabriel have asked me about bones for a couple weeks now. Skeletons hold some new fascination for them. They wanted to know the different names for bones and I had to look it up because I couldn't remember the names. It is certainly true that I learn with my children.
We stayed up far past their bed time learning where femurs, craniums, and phalanges are located. I forgot how much I like to call my fingers "phalanges," something I taught a preschool class years ago.
I took Lane to her follow-up surgery appointment and the kids were thrilled to discuss the names of bones with the doctor. I have to admit that I was full of pride when they got some large names correct.


I found an eight page skeleton puzzle onine. This link: http://www.spelloutloud.com/2011/09/human-body-learning-about-bones.html prints out a toddler size skeleton. Lane and Gabriel thought it was pretty cool to put together. I want to label the different bones with them and hang it on the wall for them to look at whenever they are inerested and done putting the puzzle together.

I Can Read, Can you?

I bought a wall sentence strip holder over a year ago. I've had little stories I printed in it. The kids haven't been interested in it for a while so I decided to change the stories to something more interesting for them.
My idea came from two difference sources. I saw an "I can read" idea that used common signs like McDonalds. I also saw an idea with names and pictures to help children identify names.
My kids love to look at themselves so I got their school pictures out and added them to the holder. I have sentence strips from the dollar store so I wrote, "I Can Read." on the first line. Then the next three lines say, "I can read... Lane, Gabriel, Alex" and the last line says, "Can you?"
I showed Lane the words and read them with her. She said, "but I can't read Mommy!" Then she was upset because I didn't use all capitals in her name.
Oh well, maybe she will appreciate the effort at a later date.

Pom Pom Patterns

We made a trip to two stores to get some inexpensive Montessori materials. We went to the thrift store and a dollar store. I was able to get trays, bowls, a large magnet, sensory material, and much more at very affordable prices.
When Lane and I were alone this afternoon, I set up my first Montessori tray. I've done several Montessori inspired activities for the kids but I haven't set up a little tray yet. It was a little exciting for me.
I found a circle pattern and printed it for her. I trimmed it to fit in the plastic tray. I added a bowl, poms, and large tweezers to the tray. I showed Lane how to transfer poms to the tray with the tweezers. She quickly created the patterns.
This activity was great for fine motor skills, patterns, and color recognition. That's a lot of learning wrapped up in one activity.



Lane started with a two handed method but her fine motor skills are strong enough for a one handed squeeze. She was able to tell me the pattern after she finished the activity.

Living vs. Nonliving?

I decided to present a science idea to Lane. I wasn't sure how quickly she would figure it out and it didn't take her long to understand the difference between living and nonliving things. I found a great presentation with cards at The Helpful Garden. http://thehelpfulgarden.blogspot.com/2011/09/livingnon-living.html
The presentation includes animals, plants, and misc. items in the every day world. The only picture that was confusing for Laney was a mushroom. Otherwise, she easily categorized each item. After the initial presentation, I brought the activity with us to dance class a few days later. While the boys were in class, she glued and sorted the items without any problems. She even wanted the labels glued on her papers.
The next week, Alex who is in first grade, brought home a living vs nonliving classification activity. Lane went to Montessori a few days later and insisted on taking her project with her for share time.

Spice White Bean Dip

Gabriel isn't overly interested in helping in the kitchen. When I asked him if he wanted to help me make a dip this afternoon, he jumped at the opportunity. It was nice to have a helper and to see his interest in measuring and mixing.
The original recipe is from annie-eats.com. I had to change it and half most of the ingredients because I only had one can of white beans in the pantry. I didn't have a lime either so I wasn't able to add it.

2 cans of white beans
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 cup hot sauce (I had to add less since kids were dipping and dunking at our house)
2 Tbsp crushed garlic
2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice
salt and pepper
water added as needed

We mixed it in the food processer and ended up with a wonderful, smooth dip. We dunked tortilla chips in it and I am too full for dinner! This is definitely a keeper of a recipe. Thank you annie-eats!

St Patrick's Day (preschool)

May the Irish hills caress you.
May her lakes and rivers bless you.
May the luck of the Irish enfold you.
May the blessings of Saint Patrick behold you.
~Irish Blessing

I introduced Lane to St. Patrick's Day. I found a cute shamrock project on this site: http://www.childcarelandblog.com/2012/03/paint-chip-shamrocks.html A shamrock template is included on the blog site. I printed out the template and cut it out. Then we glued it to green paper. I gave Lane a pair of scissors and some gren paint chips I had collected for this type of project. I asked Lane to cut on the white lines and she did so without any hesitation. The pieces seemed too large so she cut each piece again. When she was done cutting, she glued her green pieces to the shamrock.



I found some printable cutting strips on the Montessori Print Shop. It cost 79 cents to download the two sheets of cutting strips. I put the strips in a little bucket with two pairs of scissors. An empty bucket was set next to it for the cut pieces. I need to find a decent tray for these activities. She snipped away and liked the little pictures. The next day she created art work that included these little pictues.



I think my favorite part of the evening is that it was Lane's idea to wear her St. Patrick's Day pajamas. They have been in her drawer since last year and she asked to wear them!

Solar System - preschool learning

A couple weeks ago, Lane came home from school and colored a picture. I asked her to tell me about the picture and she told me that it was the solar system. I asked her to tell me more about the solar system. I wasn't sure if she was actually saying "solar system." Lane told me about planets and named Mars. She also told me about astronauts. I was quite impressed with her new knowledge.
To expand her knowledge and work on her interests, I searched for some solar system information that would work well for a three year old. I found a solar system preschool pack here: http://www.1plus1plus1equals1.net/2011/02/solar-system-preschool-beyond-pack/



First we worked on planets vs. not planets. She enjoys cutting, gluing, and sorting. We were able to incorporate new vocabulary in this short exercise. Note that Lane still picks purple paper for her projects.



While Lane was working on her sorting planet project, I laminated planets that are apart of the same unit. Lane put the planets in order by size.



Later in the day we were at the dance studio. We used that time to work on new vocabulary with Alex. It was a good way to have Alex practice reading challenging words. The children turned it into a game based on how many words they could identify correctly. We also put the planets in order by placement from the sun.

Homemade gluten free pasta

Part of Andrew's birthday gift included a pasta maker and a drying rack. We've never had homemade pasta before but I've heard it's wonderful. I wasn't sure if gluten free pasta could be made at home but it seemed possible since it's availabe in the store. Andrew is usually up for new adventures and he took this on as well.
The first time Andrew made noodles with the kids. I missed out on the photo opportunity but the spaghetti was amazing. We aren't in a hurry to buy the packaged variety after tasting homemade noodles. They really are *that* good!
Andrew decided to make homemade lasagna noodles this past Sunday. We haven't had lasagna in a long time since we want to cut out as much dairy as possible. However, with record low temperatures, lasagna sounded like an incredible treat.
The boys weren't interested in helping roll the dough this time but Lane was more than happy to jump into the fun. Andrew, Lane, and I made lasagna noodles and then extra spaghetti noodles to freeze with the left over dough.


Lane enjoyed rolling the dough and hanging it on the rack. She told us that the drying rack was like a Christmas tree and that the noodles were like hanging ornaments on a tree. It was a messy process and Lane had a lot of fun helping.
The lasgna? EXCELLENT!

Happy Birthday Dr Seuss (and Granny)

Today is the day we celebrate the birthdays of Dr. Seuss and Granny. Since Granny couldn't be here, we celebrated by getting DQ today. Maybe we can celebrate with her in person next year.



I introduced Lane to the concept of an author by telling her about Dr. Seuss's birthday. On a funny note, she calls him "Dr. Sushi." With his whimical writing, I believe he would have found that amusing. It might have made a rather neat book.
Lane completed each Dr. Seuss task quickly. I couldn't print the ideas and sheets fast enough for her. The first thing we worked on was a paper Cat in the Hat hat. I printed a hat from this site: http://www.abcteach.com/search.php?include_clipart=0&sort=&q=cat+in+the+hat&search=searching...&category=0&file_type=0&include_phrase=&exclude_keywords= I cut it out with her and then she added red stripes by gluing red poms to the hat.



Next we worked on color words and numbers by printng a fish bowl sheet from this site: http://www.classroomfreebies.com/2012/02/fish-math-with-dr-seuss.html We colored fish together and wrote numbers that cooresponded to the number of fish in each bowl.



Our last activity was from this site: http://livingmontessorinow.com/2012/02/28/montessori-inspired-dr-seuss-activities-and-dr-seuss-linky-party/ I printed the 1 Fish 2 Fish worksheet for her. She picked the purple dotter to make the fish in the fish bowl. After the two one-to-one coorspondence (counting) activitie, I realized that it is too easy for her. The activiites are good for working on her fine motor skills but she has moved on to simple addition and subtraction.



I also found free Dr. Seuss thank you cards here: http://mypaperlily.blogspot.com/2010/12/free-printables-dr-seuss-is-man.html I asked the boys to write thank yous to someone at school. Gabriel's teacher was on vacation so he chose to write a thank you to a friend who gave him a dog toy. Alex wrote a thank you to his teacher. I made suggestions on what would be an appropriate thank you. He liked, "thank you for giving me homework." I wonder if she has ever gotten a thank you for homework in her 26 years of teaching experience?