Through the eyes of a toddler

This week I gave Daniel a chance to walk around the house and take some pictures.  See the above.  It was funny to watch my little photographer walk around and take pictures of what he thought was important.  He got a good one of Rachel, some of his parents, some of his fire engine, a lot just of his feet.  I think it is too bad we don't remember much about that age, I think toddlers are pretty happy and care free.  

Other than those I don't have too many pictures from this week.  The camera's batteries have been not charging as well, and I just haven't brought my camera with me as much as I usually do.  If I did I would show you the kids holding hands in the mall as I try to find ways to keep them from running away from me, the kids visiting with some friends this week, and the joy they find in Jello.  We were out this weekend and bought Daniel a Mac truck from the movie cars, and thought he would be so excited.  It was just the cab and not the trailer.  He was so sad Mac didn't have his trailer with him, and was pretty upset about the toy in general.  Mental note:  Daniel enjoys things that are whole.  

In other news we do find out the sex of the baby this week and will keep you guys posted.  I had  a random woman in the grocery store tell me I was having a boy, so we shall see in a few days.  In the mean time we need to get outside and enjoy this 50 degree weather, I don't think it will last long, but I am glad the ice outside our door is at least melting.  And we are contemplating getting a Honda Odessey, we see a lot of folks out there with one, any thoughts on it? 

Toothpaste

Did you know that toothpaste can take out a few day old washable marker on a table?And  you would think washable marker would be more washable, but I guess not after a few days.  Put some toothpaste on the marker, leave it there for five minutes, scrub and scrub, and it does a pretty good job.  

Strange things this week.

So a few strange things happened this week.  Last Saturday we took the kids out to dinner and the mall.  This may not be strange, but we hadn't been out with the kids in a few months.  The kids did great.  It was actually an enjoyable dinner.  Next, later on in the week, Daniel came up to me and asked me for a carrot.  This was after watching Curious George eat carrots, but still vegetables have always been hard for us to get down him.  Next, not once, but twice, he went to the potty by himself.  I didn't have to prompt or ask, he just did it.  I think I have to realize that my kids are growing up.  

The kids have been enjoying coloring lately, well Rachel really enjoys coloring on herself. 
This is a funny picture because when I uploaded the pictures from the week it was on it's side because I had moved the camera to it's side to take it.  Daniel was watching me fix the pictures and he was noticing that he fell down.  He was pretty adamant that I had to put him back up because he had fallen down, so I rotated all the pictures right there.  
In the mean time I had another appointment on Monday, and everything was fine.  We have an ultrasound on the 11th of Feb, so we hope to find out the sex of the child.  This weekend we have the swim lessons still, I have a baby shower to go to, and Kevin and I are going on a date to the Melting Pot.  I haven't been there before, and I am thankful we are getting a chance to try it out.  Kevin had some more time at home with the bad weather and come comp time from last week, and we all had fun while he was around.  I am thankful that January is almost gone, onto February and another step closer to warmer weather!  

Of Pigtails and Playgrounds

Cost of an indoor playground:  over $10 (depending on where you go)

Cost of the snacks:  a few dollars

Cost of having a great nap time and worn out kids: Priceless!

This week we kept busy with two different indoor playground in the area speckled in with days at home.  I have been trying to keep Daniel's nap time down so it is easier for him to get to bed at night, so getting him tired out has been a priority.  And boy do the kids run around!  I am finding that it used to be just an hour or so we could stay out, but this morning it was for two hours the kids had fun and their stamina is growing.  I think I'm the one that gets worn out quickest.  

Can you find Rachel in this picture?  She enjoys all the ball pits she finds.  
Here was one of the more exciting points of the week for me, Rachel's new hair do.  It is fun to put it up in now two different styles, and she likes the hair out of her eyes.
Here is Rachel all bundled up earlier this week.  We got her some snow pants which make a big difference.  She can't hang outside as long as Daniel, but we have some fun times.  It is actually 40 degrees today, heat wave!  
I we need one of these at our house if Daniel uses it like this:

It's "Snow" Fun:

No Title

Some weeks are blurs like this past one.  Not that we didn't do anything, or not that it was bad, just everyday life just seemed to pass on by.  Both the kids got a less than 24 hour little bug, and that didn't really affect our week.  Kevin has been working hard on a project this week, so he worked late a few nights, so that made it a little more tiring for me.  We are getting used to the new job and new role he has.  So in the mean time, it is still cold and snowy, the kids still enjoy the swim lessons, and we are taking it one day at a time.  I did have two big pieces of news from both sides of the family, my parents will be moving from Iowa to New Jersey in a few weeks, only 5 1/2 hours away instead of the 16 driving hours, and my brother and sister in law found out they will be having a little girl in June.  

Here is Daniel baking bread with me.  I have this excellent hamburger bun recipe that my mom passed along, and it actually turned out well for me.  Daniel enjoys playing with the dough, Rachel not so much.

Here are some Dad and Rachel photos.  She was pretty clingy this week and tired, so I think she is getting the last of her teeth.  
I don't quite understand why the kids want to help so much with the dishes now.  Don't they know they will be doing them for me when they get older?
The last thing to mention is that Daniel has become my little side kick on taking care of Rachel.  Questions like, where's Rachel, what's she doing, why is she crying, is she happy, demand to come here and telling her to do things are a daily occurrence.  She is pretty good at ignoring them for the most part, except for my second example below, or just being happy he is paying attention to her.

Here are two examples:

Snow Storms and Swimming Lessons

The title of this blog is how the week ended, but the week began with a 14 week ultrasound.  The Dr said it was the worst set of pictures he had taken in the last three years, you can't really see much so I won't post them, but the baby looked healthy, we got to see him or her move around and the healthy heart beating.   We are going to see the sex of the baby, if they cooperate at the 20 week appointment, I want to get rid of at least half of the clothes I have collecting in our basement!

The rest of the week was filled with me trying to get out of the house at least once a day, weather permitting, and just keeping up with the house cleaning and everything.  I did get out with some friends to see a movie, but I had to be careful because there was a lot of ice on the ground.  I saw the Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and am still trying to figure out if I liked it or not, but it is a hard movie to see when you are pregnant, with you wanting to cry at anything anyway.

The most excitement of the week was with the swim lessons.  The kids were awake pretty early and ready to go, and loved being in the pool.  Daniel didn't stop kicking his legs the whole time.  The kids were in a parent and child group together and they had a blast.  I think Kevin and I had fun too.  The funny thing is that at the YMCA there is a basketball court across the hallway from the locker rooms, so right after they were done swimming they wanted to play some hoops.  For the next seven weeks the kids will be having two sports Saturdays.

Here is Daniel in anticipation of getting into the water.  He is almost old enough to try lessons by himself, but I think we have a swimmer on our hands.

Here Rachel is sporting her very cute (and inexpensive) bathing suit.  She liked it too, but she was a lot more clingy during the lesson and got cold near the end.  She was watching and laughing at Daniel most of the time, it has been such a blessing to have them play and laugh at each other a lot this week.  
This is what I think the rest of the Saturdays will look like.  The kids were ravenously hungry afterward and both napped early today.  I love swim lessons :-).

So this afternoon we are going to be having another "typical" snowstorm.  Looks like another night in and taking it easy.  I hope you all have a relaxing weekend as well!

Confessions on a Pajama Day

The weather is nasty outside, so it is a stay home and get some things done in your pajama's type day.  I will post pictures of the kids a little later this week, but I wanted to talk about homeschooling, and the desire to homeschool in our family.

I have been thinking about this for a few years now and am excited each and every day about the thought of homeschooling.  Through talking to a few different people and looking into a bunch of different teaching options, I have settled on this program from the Foundation for American Christian Education (www.face.net).  It teaches using what they call the Principle Approach using the Bible and Noah Webster's 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language as the basis of learning.  It is not about filling out workbooks and completing lessons, but about the child reasoning, deducting, researching, reading the classics, writing out lessons and thoughts in their own notebooks.  I know for too many years I just memorized for the tests, and am excited about learning again some of the basics and beyond.  I am actually going through a self directed study book now in preparation, and to retrain even the way that I learn, that I can apply in every area of my life.

So with that being said, won't the kids need socialization?  Yes, and I know I could use that myself!  I do plan on getting involved with other homeschoolers and/or homeschooling organization (there are currently over 1.5 million children being homeschooled in the country right now), and there is no way I am keeping my kids away from sports, we plan on getting involved in Boy Scouts and other activities like that, and taking trips and hand's on activities to reinforce all that we have been learning.  

At this time, this is my passion, and I just wanted to share that will all that read this blog.  I know that all of our children have a lot of similarities and differences, and I look forward unlocking the passion and meet the needs of each specifically.  

"Let every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed to consider well, the end of his Life and studies is to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternall Life, John 7:3, and therefore to lay Christ as the bottome, as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning." ~ New England's First Fruits, Harvard College, 1643

Ok, that is all I have for now on this subject, we will continue with the pictures and updates on the kids at the end of the week!