Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Forming great habits

Gwenyth had her first visit to the dentist this week.  Needless to say, she LOVED it!  She has been beggggging to go back each and everyday.  She can't get over just "how nice" the lady (Dental Hygentist) was.   I am admittedly terrible about going to the Dentist. I brush everyday, etc. etc. but I do not make it a priority to go to the dentist. It's quite silly since we have decent coverage but it is just a lack of time issue. Fortunately, Clint is pretty religious about going - so he takes the kiddos with him each time.

His good habits are translating beautifully to the littles in our home.


Monday, February 15, 2016

Cosmic Kids Yoga!

Maybe about a year ago, I found this GREAT program on YouTube for my kiddos (and sometimes myself) called Cosmic Kids Yoga.  It is a super fun program that gets kids doing Yoga.  I tend to mostly turn it on for them to do while I am getting dinner finished up and ready or they will sometimes do it before bedtime.


My kids actually ask to do it because each one is a fun adventure that the instructor takes them on.  There is truly something for everyone when it comes to this program.  For example, there is a Frozen themed one which was so appealing to Gwenyth.  Jude being the outdoorsy type really likes animal themed videos like the one called Frank the Frog. The way in which the channels are organized is perfect for finding the right one for your kids.  They are organized by story themes such as bravery, calming and positivity and by age groups as well.  It is kinda neat that they include a new one that is holiday themed as the next major holiday nears which only gets kids my kiddos age even MORE excited and antsy in their pantsy.  There is an abundance of videos available and they add one each month.

Here are my little Yogis.


I encourage you to check this out!  Below is a video about the program!

If you do - please let me know how you'r kiddos liked it!  Hopefully, they request it as often as my kids do!

                     

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Valentine's Card Box

This Valentine's Day, my kiddos were given the opportunity to bring in a box of their own to school for their classmates to place their cards and treats in for their classroom parties.  Of course they really wanted to have a say in what they wanted in terms of design--but the construction, not so much.  I happened to have some old cardboard cake board flats left over from Jude's Boy Scout fundraiser earlier this month and some remains from what was thrown in to recycling.  

Jude wanted a football jersey--not just any team, but his very favorite one of all--his daddy's football team.  I constructed this  box out of cardboard and duct tape.    I wrapped it in paper and painted everything with the exception of the emblem on the front which is actually a sticker that goes on helmets.  I stayed up til the wee  hours and Jude was thrilled when he saw it in the morning.



Gwenyth wanted hers to be the Lipstick from Shopkins.  I searched the web for what it looked like and found a similar one on Pinterest and got to work.  I bent the cardboard at each corrugated section  and duct taped the heck out of it to create a cylinder shape.  I then found a cereal box in recycling a pieced in the bottom and made the arms.  Wrapped in paper and painted away.  They eyes are layers of paper taped on top of one another. Voila!  Gwenyth was so happy with it and could not wait to show it off at her party.




Friday, February 5, 2016

Tiny Dancer

Growing up in a military family and moving around so much with working parents, I never got the opportunity to take dance lessons or something of the sort when I was super young.  When I found out I was having a little girl, I could not wait to hear what her interests would be.  From a very young age, it was evident that Gwen loved to dance.  This past summer she did a 4 week program that was twice a week.  She liked LOVED it.  We signed her up for lessons the next fall for the preschool program and she literally ran out of her first class asking if she could go straight back into the class because she wanted to do it again.  The studio only allows occasionally viewing for parents and I truly look forward to those days.  Since the fall, we have not missed a single class - I don't think I would be able to slide it past Gwen without her noticing.  She has recently expressed an interest in tumbling.  She watches Youtube Kids videos of people tumbling or doing gymnastics over and over again and attempts what she sees right away.  This summer we are going to give that a go as well.   Who knows at four years old how long dance will peak her interest...but it sure is fun to watch her grow as she learns more and more.  

Look at that form!


Monday, February 1, 2016

Fort Worth



My high school friend, Jill and I have been talking about visiting my friend Sara and Erik in Texas for quite some time now.  We would talk about it, life would happen and we'd get busy. Then we'd talk about it again---and then same thing...life would happen.  We'd get busy with our kids schedules, busy with other vacations that were set in stone, I would hit my busy work season, or Sara would be back here in Michigan visiting family.  It just kept taking a back burner to all the "in your face" constant demands that we have as working mommas. Sound familiar?

Well shortly before Christmas while searching travel sites---which I do pretty much EVERY day of my life as I am always looking for my next adventure....I saw that Spirit Airlines had a flight to Dallas/Fort Worth that was insanely cheap---I mean like $68.20 cheap!  DIRT CHEAP! After adding a carry on---the total was $103.20 roundtrip.  Since Jill and I decided we'd stuff our stuff in together in the same carry on -- we shaved a little off our total which worked out great on the way there---but was a little cramped on the way back.  We were doing this flight on the cheap since we both had upcoming vacations directly from returning from this trip. I was also able to talk my friend Kristen in to joining us which which worked out so splendid.  She had recently relocated from Seattle to Chicago, so hopefully it was a stress reliever for her.

Upon boarding our early AM flight from Detroit, I knew exactly what I wanted to have for breakfast; a healthy meal of protein and grapes.  Hence, the peanuts and wine. 


We stopped to pose for a pic with the city as our backdrop.

I am a very early riser---unlike my peers.  So as they slept, I took a morning stroll by myself to get coffee and visit this gem of a gallery called the Sid Richardson Museum.  The paintings were wonderful and features paintings by Frederic Remington and Charles M. Russell.  The art epitomizes the great American West.  The gallery was free, the young gal at the front counter was extremely friendly and it was the perfect way to start the day.


We went to the Stockyards to watch the cattle drive.

 Visited some shops and tried on some 'stache shades with Kristen. 


And these wonky ones that I wish I would have purchased!


We saw these pretty fountains all lit up at night.  Don't get your hopes up though about running through them and splashing around.  It is highly frowned upon.


They do allow selfies in front of it though!


The last day we began with brunch at Cafe Modern inside the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.