Hide Your Crazy!

Hello friends! Today I am writing about a topic that is near and dear to my heart. Normal. I'm someone that loves to throw back my head in raucous laughter and dance to music in my head. I'm definitely NOT what you would call normal and this often times works against me. My children were once in an ultra conservative private school (what a mistake that turned out to be) and from the minute they laid eyes on me, I was enemy #1, because I didn't fit their version of 'normal'. It didn't matter that my beliefs were the same as theirs, it mattered that I didn't look like them. Judgement was passed and it was sad and hurtful to see. 

I often times sit and wonder what is normal anyway? My sons love to play Barbies with my daughter and my daughter loves to dig in the dirt with the boys. They all play soccer and baseball and are happy and healthy. That's all that matters right? Then why do I find myself scolding my children when my daughter begins to twirl like a ballerina in the middle of Target? When my son starts dancing with reckless abandon at the library? Why am I quick to tell them to 'act normal' when all 3 of them decide to spend the day speaking in various accents?? As I get older am I worried about what the outside world will think of my children? If so, why do I care? I see how their faces look as soon as I tell them to stop, but why should they have to? They are not in the way of anyone and not disrespectful in the least, they are in their own world of imaginative play and I just squelched it. 

It's time for us to buck societal pressures and let our children live. As long as they are not disrupting anyone around (yelling, screaming, running in inappropriate places etc.), why are we taking away their spirit? I'm going to let go of what people think and worry about what my children think. What are you going to do?

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Signs of Spring!

Spring is here and the signs of it are everywhere!

Colorful totes are ready to be carried to the library!

Snacks are being served outdoors!

Lilacs are in bloom!

Weather is too warm for the stove or oven! Time for Crock Pot meals!

Evenings are spent on the screen porch just talking about the day.

What are your signs of Spring? Share them in the comments below please!

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Money Math Centers!

Math is a huge subject that we focus on over here, my kids have a love of numbers that I just could not understand. I was a poor Math student that just ended up detesting the subject in every way. With the passion my kids have for numbers, it has made me look at Math in a totally different way. With Roman, my youngest, I am starting at the bottom and looking at it all with open eyes. I can see how they enjoy this as I teach him and then the other children new things, there is a true beauty in Math, almost a language in itself. Maybe I truly can get to like it too!

My youngest is tackling Money in math and gets the coins confused when they are on paper. I figured a hands on approach was needed here. I decided to make some Math centers to help him familiarize himself with his Math & Money lessons. I took a variety of coins and glued them onto Popsicle sticks to give them a handle and make them easier to handle. When he sees them on a worksheet, he matches up the right plastic coins, so that he can hold them as he counts. Roman has found this way much easier to learn with. The back of each stick has the value of the coin on it in case the child needs help with it and is using them alone.

I made a full set of coins with the Tails side up as opposed to the rest, which had the heads side up. Now, they become an easy matching game! Sometimes on worksheets, children confuse the coin, because they are not familiar with the backs of them. It makes learning fun!

These can also be used with 'store' cards! These cards all have items and prices on them and the kids can make up the change needed to purchase the items. If you don't have a set of these, it's easy to make them up on your own. You can give the child some cards of things to 'buy' and then a handful of sticks. See if they have enough money and how much change they would get back or how much more they would need.

Add and Subtract! I took a wooden block from the craft store and put addition and subtraction symbols on each side. The idea of the game is to pull out 2 sticks (more if they are advanced) and roll the die. Now add or subtract! Get it right and keep the sticks! Winner has the most sticks at the end of the game.

How true this is!! Enjoy the day my friends!

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Rainy Days and Sundays...

We've had our bout of rainy days recently and you know what? We LOVE THEM! The kids like to snuggle up together on the couch and read as we all listen to the rain that falls on the roof. Once we get our outdoor curtains installed on the screen porch, that will be an AWESOME place to sit and read as the rain falls. 

A few weeks ago we won the BEST package of nature DVD's from our news station! We are so blessed to own these movies and I have already begun creating lesson plans around them! The kids are eager to learn daily. 

We have been on the go so much lately, it has been time to just take a break from being in the car ALL.The.Time. There really comes a time when you just need to STOP and put yourself first.

As I am sure you have gathered on your own, we travel a lot. Whether it be long distances or just a couple hours, we are always on the go. One of the things I LOVE LOVE LOVE to keep in the car is a coloring pack for each child. I got these cases at a library sale and they originally held books on tape! We kept those, but stored them differently and used these cases for this. The tape section is sunken in and helps keep the crayons and pencil in place, while the book clips on the opposite side are perfect for holding paper! 

Be Happy and Enjoy Every Minute my Friends!!!

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Weekend Wrap-Up

Happy Tuesday everyone!!! My days are all screwed up, because my husband gave me the greatest gift of all for Mother's Day & he gave it to me yesterday!!! We have hectic holidays with a lot of travel and a lot of hustle and bustling that makes it quite tiring. With all the running around and travel, our house takes a big the entire week before in preparation and my Monday is usually full of cleaning, and pulling my hair out, instead of relaxing and unwinding. Yesterday, my husband had the day off and he did all the cleaning and work for me! He allowed me to sit in our library and just enjoy. It was wonderful! 

Friday is when Mexico, where my family is from, celebrates Dia de Los Madres (Mother's Day) and I had been telling my husband recently how much I miss Mexico. He surprised me with a gift of  a Gardenia tree! This tree blooms everywhere in Mexico, but mainly in the parks where we stroll hand in hand every time we are there!! 

 Our pumpkin plants are sprouting like crazy!! It's so amazing to see them come to life and lean towards the sun, trying to get in as much as it can. The kids are absolutely loving the idea of a garden as it takes shape before their eyes.

Saturday, we were in the city of Chicago for National Train Day! It took place at Union Station, and we even took the train there! It was so much fun for everyone, that we still have not stopped talking about it! I love events like this, that are fun for the entire family.

I took the kids to have their pictures taken and because I matched them, the photographer insisted I get in the photo too, blahh! I hate having my photo taken, anyone else feel like that? I'm a fan of being behind the camera. 

Can someone explain to me why the coffee table ends up looking like a tornado blew through EVERY SINGLE DAY??? Oh and not at the end of the day, this is usually by noon!

I hope you all enjoyed every minute of your weekend!

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Sail Away With Water Play!

The water is warming up and the kids are eager to get into the water play! I am bringing back the boats we made a couple years ago! These are such a blast to make and play with! All you need is a straw and a piece of paper cut into a perfect square and decorated, Sponge cut into a boat shape. Assemble the parts and enjoy!!!

A quick tip for all! Keep your eyes open in all departments for the perfect items to put into your home! I love these darling little milk jugs for the kids to take their drinks on the screen porch as we read and enjoy the weather. I found these in VASE section of IKEA!!!

Take chances and enjoy every minute my friends!

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Summer Bucket List #6 - Lemonade Stand!

It's feeling like Summer, so it's time to get working on the awesome things that we plan on doing! Our Bucket List has 100 items on it and I am so glad to see us bumping them right off the list!

Want to print one out without the lines crossed out? GO HERE!

We started with this MARKET STAND from IKEA! This was sold flat, so it was easy to transport home and super easy to put together. My husband also added a shelf to the counter for spills and to make it sturdier. He is in the process of making a stand on casters for the bottom of the stand in order for the children to be able to push it around outdoors and to protect it from the ground.

I helped the kids make signage and decor using this awesome LEMON TEMPLATE from HERE! I altered it many times to fit my needs. Making the lemons smaller and then using different types and sizes of font. It was perfect!

We began decorating with the small lemons punched out with a Circle Punch and then glued on the sides of the stand. We used coasters with stickers to spell out the word LEMONADE. It still looked pretty plain, so we headed on to add more! We did add a working Cash Register from Learning Resources and it's absolutely perfect for this and holds real money.

As the stand will only be outdoors when it's open, we did not need a closed sign. I just taped this right to the register and it does double duty for role playing in the playroom and the lemonade stand!

If you are interested in printing any of the signage I made, please HEAD HERE!

This is the view from the back! On the bottom is a small bucket with a towel to keep the stand sticky free and clean! On the shelf are cups and straws. Beneath is a jug from TARGET (5.99) and a flower pot from IKEA with lemons and limes for slicing.

The left side of the stand has a shelf for a small container holding cut limes and lemons (IKEA), a tip jar also made from a flower pot from IKEA and a sign that I slipped into a page protector! A small jar of cookies holds a treat for the kids as they work but they also plan on selling them for .25 if someone asks!

So what do you think? I hope they do alright today, I am so nervous for them! I just don't want all their energies to be wasted on a slow day and then for them to be too disappointed.

I had absolutely nothing to worry about! The community turned out in full force and the kids sold almost 100 glasses of lemonade! Count in the tips and it was near 200! I was amazed and so proud of the people that stopped. The children had a blast and learned so much. When it started out slow, Autumn knew we needed a sign to draw in the crowd and boy was she right!

Always do more than you think is necessary and it will make a difference! Enjoy every minute my friends!

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