Puddle stomping

I decided to revisit walnut boats with the boys. Last time we made them, we were limited to a kitchen sink boat launch because of weather.

But yesterday evening, the warm spring air and the morning rains had given us perfect waterways in the rutted driveway of the vacant driveway next to ours.

The boys each made their own sail and Ethan helped me fill the walnuts with dripping hot wax.



They lined up the fleet at some sort of prearranged starting point.



After that, we were all a little unclear how these boats might "race" each other. The boys decided they would blow on them to get them going.



It was pretty intense.



Within seconds, boats were tipping and sinking and hopes were dashed.

Sadly, one unfortunate walnut was even stomped on in a fit of rage.

Then came the natural progression of chaos and splashing and mud in the eyes.





And, not much later, bath-time.

Out with my hobos

The boys have a couple days off from school for mid-winter break. With the sun shining and snow gone, I managed to convince Ethan and Drew to get out and explore with me.

I've really wanted to try the town trails in the winter sometime. A real winter. With real snow. Instead, we maneuvered around a little mud and leaves. Still, nice to get outside.



It was fun to be out with just the older boys. No need for bathroom breaks or snacks. They were constantly making me laugh.

We saw two or three suspicious looking characters in the woods and they would shout out, "Hobo with a gun!"

We found a little pond, if you can call it that, in the Dinosaur Hill section of the trail.



It took the boys a little while to get used to the ice.



Every time it cracked a little, they would shout at me to get off saying, "But you're the heaviest!"



Ethan had grand schemes of ice-hockey. Which lasted until he stepped through a thin spot in the ice.





We headed home, had a few impromptu races on the trail. Not gonna say who lost every single one. Still fun.

How to spell Thanksgiving

I've been looking forward to the Thanksgiving season.  It's good for my mental health.  Actively replacing all my natural discontent and worry with the reality of what's good.  So many good things. 

We plan to do the ol' listing of blessings at some point, whether I find an original way to do it or not.  In fact, we do a daily version of this but it does become pretty rote. 

Recently I came across the word "Obrigado" in a book and it brought back a flood of mostly-repressed memories from intern days in Rhode Island.  A time when I carried around Portuguese flashcards in my scrubs, hoping to communicate with patients.   Really, it was my supervisor I should have worried about.  Sadly, there were no flashcards to help me speak petty tyrant.

This, with another post I'd seen recently using pasta letters to make name-cards, gave me an idea.

A banner with "thank-you" in several different languages.  Good for the fine motor skills, pre-reading skills and more!



 

 

 

 

Yarn it all

I recently tried my hand at dyeing yarn for the first time.  I wanted to make duck feet for Sadie's costume but had no yellow yarn the right size.  I did, however, have yellow food coloring and an old skein of white yarn.  The transformation was so satisfying, I knew it would be something the kids would enjoy.

With the long weekend in mind, I bought several packets of Kool-Aid.   Each of the boys picked 2 different colors, Ethan found directions for dyeing on Knitty and we were off.  Some of the process in pictures, both low and high resolution:


 


 






 

 

 

We survived a four day weekend!

Ethan and Drew had yesterday and today off from school.  Some teacher professional development business or other.  It's made for a bit of a lull in the usual routine, if life with four kids can ever have such a thing.

I didn't have anything spectacular planned other than keeping my head above water.   I've found that kids have a way of happily filling up time themselves.  Ok, not always happily.  But, for the most part, we have had two fairly laid back days together which were badly needed.

There was:
-lots of raking (including one of our neighboring vacant homes)
-reading
-at least one game of Bananagrams
-soccer games (always)
-visits with neighborhood friends
-yes, there were quite a bit of Mario Striker games and SpongeBob episodes, I admit.
-one blessed 45 minute period when Keith took ALL the kids voting with him.  I vacuumed in peace (did I just say that?) and when I finished vacuuming, I enjoyed every last second of quiet.  The cat and I looked at each other.  And smiled. (did I say that, too?)
-a visit to the library
-haircuts for two of the boys
-homemade tattoos (not my idea) which eventually just turned into stamping themselves
-a little bit of knitting (after the kids were in bed lest you think me so indulgent)
-one fun craft project involving yarn and Kool-Aid (more of that for a separate post)
-lots and lots of coffee
-and, oh yeah, way too much yelling and screaming and general fighting


There was NOT:
-any driving to and from soccer or school (Bless!)
-hateful morning poking and prodding to GET READY, brush your teeth, get dressed already! In actual clothes, please!
-packing of lunches
-homework (!)  Yes, you heard me, NO homework!  What are elementary schools coming to these days? So lax!
-no need to dress a certain way (No, you can't wear shorts and a t-shirt to school again, Ethan.  People will judge me!)
-endless scraping of frost from car
-waiting in the Kindergarten car loop (although, I really kind of enjoy those quiet moments)
-an abundance of patience on my part.  But that's nothing new.

Wax on

Thank you, kind readers for your words of support. I just meant to post a photo and it turned into a whine session. Guess I needed to vent.

This weekend I was able to squeeze in some craft therapy, between soccer games and parties. Thanks again to pinterest for inspiration.


While on a walk last week, I even stumbled (almost literally) on a large supply of crayons at a yard sale. Brand new and dirt cheap. With this project in mind, I snapped them up quite happily.

In fact, Keith stopped by a flea market later in the week and brought home even more crayons for me. Total and irrefutable proof that this project was meant to be!

I had an old canvas of Grandpa S's in mind. I'm quite sure this was not one of his intended uses for this surface. Definitely more Bob Ross than Degas. Sorry, Grandpa!



Ethan wielded the hair dryer for the first five minutes or so. The boys gathered round and oohed and ahhed.



The wax cooperated and began melting quickly although it took many minutes more to melt the whole crayon. I taped rather than hot glued the crayons on because I wanted to remove them after the melting. This had the effect of insulating them which prolonged the process.



Next time (!), less dark colors (as suggested). When the melted colors mixed, they turned out a little darker than I really like.


Otherwise, a masterpiece!

Angry Birds come to life

I saw this idea on Pinterest several weeks ago and had to pin it for future fun. Pure brilliance, I tell you! Since then, we've been on the lookout for rocks the right size and shape. We picked up one or two in northern Michigan and a few more in NH.

We started painting the rocks this week. Ethan helped draw some of the pig faces.




While out shopping today for last-minute school supplies, we stopped by a dollar store and were excited to find the same water-toy slingshots used in the original post. They worked well, once the boys got the hang of them.



Elaborate structures for the pigs were soon springing up.





Angry birds began flying.



Kingdoms were destroyed.



The only thing missing, that distinctive mumbo-jumbo battle cry of the vigilante birds and their piggy nemeses.

Up North

We've wanted to explore northern Michigan since we moved here. The furthest north I've been was Muskegon although Keith has traveled more. We generally try to reserve travel energy (and money) for our trips East and South to visit family.

But, this summer, thanks to a generous offer, we've been able to see some more of this great state. We aren't all the way north but close. A friend offered the use of his family cabin and we were excited to accept.

Discovery number 1: Northern Michigan has the coolest bunk beds ever. At least this place does. The boys are in heaven.


It's been a bit wet since we arrived but we've been able to check out the lake nearby (Keith and the boys have anyway) and visit an elk herd which was pretty spectacular, really.





The weather is looking good for the next couple days. I'm so thankful that the kids will have these memories.

Hot enough?

It's hot. Too hot to think. So here's what we did.





Amazing what a little soap and water can do to cool things off.





And just how much kids can accomplish when they are having fun.





The boys ended up cleaning one Ford, one Little Tikes Cozy Coupe, one bike and each other. Not bad for a scorching hot, summer day.

A curious ancient pastime

Goal: Freshen up this old, incomplete croquet set, found free beside the road in our ol' Birmingham days. A little crazy. Just an aside, people make their own toilet paper. I'm not so bad.



And nothing's crazy when you are stuck with four kids and no car for far longer than is decent. With the possibility of many more car-less days. Thank you, competent people of the mechanic world.



Although I actually kind of like the old muted colors, I thought some fresh paint might be fun. Transformation brought to you by paintbrushes, a rag and a rubber band.












Next step: learn the fine points of croquet. And make some hoops.