5/28 random. . .

Liddy is trying out a new hairdo-I love little girls! And I love that she has enough hair to have some fun with! I just keep staring at this picture-I love it so much! Her expression, her eyes. I might need to print this one off.

Aidan's last day of school was today. He told Ann Michelle (my friend-we do carpool together) that he was "happy/sad". A child's version of bittersweet. I fear he has a boring summer ahead of him. I vow now to do my best that that doesn't happen.

I have a 2 year old for sale! He likes to dump food out on the floor, flood bathrooms, and throw tantrums. But, he also gives wonderful hugs, amazing kisses, loves to cuddle, is a wonderful brother and says "Mama" adorably. On second thought, maybe I'll keep him.

It's the first day of summer vacation, and it is windy and rainy. So we made this to feel better. Cake can cure many ills. Especially if there is a smiley face on it.

Isn't it cute? The boys helped, by eating the leftover frosting.


It is also National Hamburger Day-and we are going to celebrate in style! (Reeeed Robin!)Hamburgers are my favorite food-I am glad they have a day dedicated to them.

Thus ends my random ramblings of May 28.

Boredom Buster #1!

Kids get bored, right? Well, I am always wanting to solve this dilemma, and so I thought that I would find fun things to do, try them out on my kids, and then report back here. Let me know what you think.
Today's Boredom Buster: Dried Bean Pans with Kitchen Utensils

All I did was put a couple bags of dried beans into 9x13 pans and gave the boys cups, ladles, tongs, scoops and spoons to pick up the beans. They honestly played with this for a full hour (Wyatt even longer) before wanting to move on. Bonus points for helping Aidan with fine motor skills (he used the pinch tongs to pick up a bean and place it in the cup). It wasn't such a good game for Lydia, who wanted to eat the beans, but the boys loved it. In fact, they have asked to play this again a couple more times.

Verdict: Winner! Cheap, easy and fun.

Kindergarten Graduation

Aidan graduated from Kindergarten today! YAY! They had an adorable ceremony and really hyped up the kids and parents. They asked that the kids come to school in their best clothes, to bring our cameras and they even served refreshments. (I just love his school-it really is a fantastic school. We partially chose our house based on this elementary.) Here are lots of pictures from today's ceremony. Ace giving me his best tough guy in line before going into the gym.
With his some of his school friends-Ciara, Hazel, Masen, Aidan, and Graysn. Yes, he is a head shorter than most of his classmates. He has so many friends and lots of them have been to our house. His best friend changes daily, but usually it is Graysn (in the yellow sweater vest). He is a good kid and they have lots in common. I have also volunteered in his classroom all year and I know all of his classmates. They are a wonderful class and I am proud to see them all graduate today. They have worked so hard to be ready for 1st grade.
Walking into the gym. They had Pomp and Circumstance playing and everything. They really went out of their way to make it special (the hat colors are the school colors-blue and gold).
The entire A.M. kindergarten. The principal said they had 73 kids graduate in the morning and another 50 will in the afternoon. The whole kindergarten sang a song and then each class sang their own song.

Aidan's class singing "Reggie Rooster." It is an AlphaFriend song. They did so well with the actions and everything! Ace is the 2nd one from the left in the blue vest.

Mr. Gauchay (the principal) presenting Aidan with his diploma. I have to admit, I got just a bit teary eyed thinking about 12 years in the future.
Aidan with his teacher, Mrs. Rigby. She is a wonderful teacher! I am so glad that he was able to have her this year. I couldn't have picked out a better kindergarten teacher for him. I also really enjoyed helping her in her classroom too.

Thumbs up! All graduated! He still has 3 more days of school, but they are all fun days. I really think he will miss going to school everyday. He is such a social little guy (sorry, big guy), he will miss the interaction. Wow-I just realized that he will be in the class of 2022! I can't believe I have a 1st grader!

What Rachel is Reading

So, I am going to start a new "feature" where I review one of the many (many) books I have waiting for me on my bedside table. Please tell me what you think!Today's Pick: The Red Pyramid (Book 1 of the Kane Chronicles) by Rick Riordan

Simple review-Loved it! Rick Riordan also wrote the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, which I also really enjoyed. The Kane Chronicles are his newest series, but instead of Ancient Greece, his newest hero and heroine are taking on the gods and goddessess of Ancient Egypt.

Expanded review-Carter and Sadie Kane are brother and sister who don't know each other at all. Following the death of their mother 6 years ago, Carter went traveling all over the world with his father, famed Egyptologist (side note-I totally wanted to be an Egyptologist when I was little. Still do a little bit.) Dr. Julius Kane, and was homeschooled by him. Sadie lived with their grandparents in London, England, only getting to see her dad and brother twice a year. Each sibiling longs for what the other has and have nothing in common. On Christmas Eve, the date of their scheduled visit, things go very bad in the British Museum. Trying to make "everything right," their Dad summons a figure, blows up the Rosetta Stone, and gets banished into a golden sarcophogus. Now, all alone, Carter and Sadie try to put together the pieces of this puzzle and discover that the gods and goddesses of Ancient Egypt are real and one (Set) has an evil plan (don't they all?) to destroy Ma'at (order and peace) and usher in Apophis (chaos god). They also find out that their mom and dad were magicians of the House of Life and that they (Carter and Sadie) have powers they didn't know that they had-and that they are instrumental to stopping Set and Apophis. They meet all matter of help and hinderance along the way, which makes for a pretty quick moving story.
Carter and Sadie's point of views are both given, using the device that Rick Riordan is actually just writing down an audio taping of their story. I think it is cute, because sometimes there are little interjections by the other sibiling which shows both their personality and their growing relationship. This is definately a book for kids (I would put it at pre-Harry Potter even, 7-9 yrs old), just like the Percy Jackson series was, but I really enjoyed reading it. I am so excited for these books that make reading fun and exciting for little kids! What a great thing it is! I can't wait for Aidan to get just a little bit older so I can start reading outloud these books to him. I wanted to research the Eqyptian gods after reading this too. (Rick's version of Anubis is my favorite-think Edward Cullen.) If you have a couple days, and want a book that is pretty much mindless fun, pick it up!

Dam Fun!

(Title courtesy of Jeremy) After our very rough couple of weeks (see last post) we decided to have a day of fun and go on an adventure! Our destination was Palisades Dam. We packed up a lunch, a first aid kit (we really didn't want to jinx ourselves) and the kids and we were off.
We went down to the boat dock and threw rocks in the water. Oh, the boys enjoyed that! Jeremy tried to teach them how to skip rocks, but they really just wanted to see who could make the biggest splash. Lydia really wanted to go in the water and kept walking down the dock to have the waves lap up on her toes. She giggled when the waves got her. Jeremy wanted to hitch a ride on a boat, while I was just really enjoying the sunshine.
Aidan took off his shoes and socks to put them all the way in the water and he said that the water was COLD!
Wyatt liked to watch all the boats that were coming in and out of the water. He also liked collecting the driftwood and setting it afloat.


After playing on the dock and beach for a while, we got hungry and scouted out a perfect place for a picnic. We found a place with a table and a place to lay down a blanket for Lydia. Out came the sandwiches, chips and drinks and we ate. And then played some more. We brought a ball and some bubbles and it was just a fun place to relax and enjoy one another. Wyatt was fasinated by the bugs and after examining them throughly, he stomped on them. Aidan wanted to explore through all the trees and bushes. Lydia just liked to have a place to chill with her bottle. After lunch, we went back down to the beach and walked up a ways, just exploring and skipping rocks.

We ended the afternoon with a Square Ice Cream cone. Can you drive past Swan Valley and not get one?

We had such a fun time. Aidan kept saying that it was "the best day ever!" and we were happy to spend some fun time together. Now, we are all tired and pink-cheeked and we will all sleep well tonight, ready for another (hopefully boring) week.

When it Rains, It Pours!

We have had a rough 10 days or so. You don't really have to read this, but I just had to write it down so I could believe it!

It all started last Tuesday, when the kids and I were at McDonald's playing. Some older kids (8 or 9ish) started picking on Wyatt! Anyway, in the midst off all of that, he got a nice cut above his eye. (I wish I had a picture-it was a beauty.) It should have had stitches, but I thought it would be okay. I should have taken him in for stitches-it got infected. It is all good now, and chicks dig scars, right? He has also come to me with all sorts of random bumps, bruises, cuts and scrapes.

We also need to schedule some kidney tests for him in the very near future.

The next day, I took Lydia in for her 14 month shots. She had a CRAZY reaction to the MMR, and less than 3 hours after receiving the immunization, her face was covered in red spots and then she developed hives all over the rest of her body (I wish I had pictures of this too-it was crazy! She didn't even look like Lydia!). She was miserable and itchy, but Benedryl took care of it in a few days. Just as her body was getting rid of the reaction, she caught strep throat and was even more miserable! One night, we ended up taking her in to the ER. She had a fever of 108 and she couldn't breathe. (She has been in the ER twice in her life, yet my very active little boys have never been-go figure.) Miss Liddy got some antibiotics (she is allergic to several kinds, so we have to be careful which ones we give her) and lots of Motrin/Tylenol. She finally started to feel better. During all of this, she has also cut 4 teeth. Poor sweet little girl! She has been seriously doped up on drugs. Now she is really clingy, because we have been holding her for almost 2 weeks straight! Hopefully she grows out of that soon. My arms are getting tired.

And now Aidan. He had a double ear infection. It turns out that he has some issues with his ear anatomy that is affecting his hearing and we need to see an ENT for some surgery in the near future.

On top of all that, our dryer stopped working, I cut the bottom of my foot and Jeremy has worked about 65 hours a week! I am tired. I sure hope that things slow down for us. I find absolutely nothing wrong with being nice and bored.

Cinco de Mayo!

Happy 5th of May everyone! We decided to celebrate this Mexican holiday by exposing our kids to a little new food culture-Mexican treats! I found Pena Fiel in a local grocery store (actually, this brand is Jarritos, but Mexican soda pop will always be Pena Fiel to me). I also found my favorite Mexican treat, Sponch. It is a cookie, with marshmellow and coconut topping. These are some of my favorite memories from a family reunion trip to Mexico a long time ago. It is only fitting that I introduce my kids (and husband) to the treats.

The boy's first taste of Sponch. Aidan's critique was "I didn't love it," while Wyatt ate about half.

Lydia carried hers around for a while, but I eventually found a soggy, half eaten cookie in the living room. The pop went over much better! They both loved it and drank it right down. Aidan said, "I love this stuff! The bubbles are going to my head!" They also liked to clink the bottles together (which resulted in some spilled Pena Fiel). We finished off the day with Taco Soup (it was cold and I didn't want to make enchiladas!) and Mario Cart. It is fun to add just a little tiny bit something different to an otherwise everyday, boring week. I think we all enjoyed tasting something new.

Taco Soup Recipe (courtesy sis in law Angela)

1 can kidney beans, drained

1 can pinto beans, drained

1 can corn (add another 1/2-1 can in for soupier soup)

1 can diced tomatoes (add another 1/2-1 can in for soupier soup)

1 lb ground beef, browned

1 envelope taco seasoning

Throw everything into a crockpot and cook on low for 6 hours. Serve over Fritos and with shredded chedder cheese and sour cream. YUM!

Good Night, Sleep Tight

Is there nothing better than sleeping children?