Crafts for preschoolers

First of all, I can't believe that Lane is a preschooler!  I almost titled this post "Crafts for Toddlers"...then I realized that Lane is no longer a toddler.  Crazy!

Anyway, we've kinda been neglecting craft time in this house.  We've been so busy with preschool, GEM, and Bible Study that it's been hard to find time to do crafts. The past couple days, I've made more of an effort to make something with Lane.

In honor of the leaves changing color, we made a cute "tree with falling leaves":

It's simply cardstock cut up into tiny little pieces (leaves) and put in a ziploc bag.  We then cut out trees and sky and sun to staple around it.

Then Lane got to shake it up and watch the leaves fall.  He had a lot of fun cutting everything!

Today he helped me make "building sticks".  We took a bunch of jumbo craft sticks and stuck velcro circles on them.

They can be connected to form letters, shapes, houses, roads, whatever.  Both kids really liked playing with them - Lane would build something and then Katy would tear it apart.

At least they are playing together :)

Love this girl....

...and her blue eyes!  Just like her daddy...

Pinterest love

I LOVE Pinterest.  I could spend hours upon hours just browsing the website.  I can definitely relate to the quote I saw: "Thank you, Pinterest, for helping me feel crafty even though I just spent 3 hours staring at the computer".

After all, where else can you find (in one place) ideas for your home:


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your food:


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 and your kids:


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 But - sitting and looking at pretty pictures (while fun) doesn't decorate my house or feed my family.  So, here are two things I have done in the past couple weeks using ideas from Pinterest:

Melted crayon art was really fun and surprisingly relaxing.  It's now hanging the kids' playroom.  It's simply crayons hot-glued to a blank canvas and then melted with a blow dryer.

I saw this coffee table and realized that Mom had one almost exactly like it sitting in her basement.  After stenciling it and painting it a cheery yellow, it no longer screams 1970s.  Or maybe it does and I actually like the 1970s?? :)

I'm trying to challenge myself to do at least one thing I found on Pinterest every week, whether it is a craft, diy home project or simply a new recipe.  Now...off to Pinterest to find what I should do this week....

P.S. If anyone needs an invite to Pinterest, let me know and I'll send you one!

Every parent can relate to this...

Honestly, what parent doesn't want their kid(s) to have everything they want?  It's fun to see their little faces light up with a new toy, a candy bar, a pet, whatever.  Of course, no parent (at least the ones I know) gives their kid everything they want - but it would be fun!  (If Lane got everything he wanted, we'd have a house full of giant construction equipment and would eat nothing but candy corn and kit kats.)

But...why is it that when you think the kids are going to love something...it doesn't work out the way you planned. 

We have had this Power Wheels motorcycle sitting in our garage since Curtis found it in his parent's shop.  It didn't work, but after buying a small part for it, Curtis got it running.  We figured Lane would LOVE to drive it around (Katy already liked sitting on it any chance she got!).

I've been thinking about getting Katy a Cozy Coupe car (you know, the big ones that go outside) for Christmas.  When I saw that our neighbors a few blocks away had one for FREE out on the curb...I figured I might as well snatch it up (well, after seeing it there for a few days and deciding that since no one else wanted it, why not?).  It was pretty dirty and worn out, but after a good washing, it's not too bad.  Bring on the fun!

As it turns out - Cozy Coupe had to be stored on top of the garbage can due to all the fighting/screaming matches over who got to ride him.  Lane freaked out when the motorcycle started to move and refused to get back on.

So much for the fun times I envisioned!

ETA:  Lane did eventually get on the motorcycle when we put it on the bike path.  He loves it now.  And Lane has learned to leave Katy alone if she's any where near Cozy Coupe.  Apparently, it is HER car and she DOES NOT want to share it, but she will happily spend a half hour sitting in it and playing the music.

Keasling family picnic

On Saturday, we got together with all the Keasling family (Curtis' mom's side) in Iowa.  Due to the flooding, we couldn't take the normal route there....so between Chad's navigational skills and Curtis' not-paying-attention skills, we ended up getting lost and arriving about 30 minutes late.  At least we made it before too many of us had a meltdown!

After a quick lunch, the kids were off to play:

It was super cold out!  We hated to be outside watching the kids, but they didn't seem to mind.  Lane and Katy spent most of the afternoon playing with the various ride-on toys and Katy enjoyed having her doll stroller to keep her occupied.

One of the highlights is Uncle Neil's horses.  I actually refuse to get on them after riding a particularly rowdy one a few years ago.  The kids LOVE riding, so I just handed them off to Curtis and Chad for the rides.

Katy started "neighing" like a horse and whenever I would say "giddy-up" she would start bouncing up and down.  Curtis said that she bounced the whole ride...and even started kicking, which the horse didn't like!

It was too bad that the weather wasn't nicer!  Brent Lancaster figured out a pattern - whenever the weather is crappy at the picnic, we have a nice winter.  Whenever the weather is gorgeous, we have a long yucky winter.  So...maybe it will be a nice winter?  I can only hope!

Henry Doorly Zoo

Last Friday our family took a day trip to Omaha to take the little ones to the zoo.  We decided to go on a weekday in September, hoping that it wouldn't be crowded or hot.  We got our wish - it was a beautiful day and hardly any visitors.  Katy wasn't feeling the greatest (earache), but she was a trooper and still enjoyed herself!  I promised Lane a stuffed animal from the gift shop if he was good all day.  That was a great motivator and he was a great little boy.

We saw this almost as soon as we walked through the gates.  It turned out to be Lane's favorite "animal".

It's hard to take pictures at the zoo.  Do you take them of the animals?  Or of people's backs as they are standing and looking at the animals?

My favorite exhibits are the aquarium and the Lied Jungle.  All 3 kids loved the aquarium, especially the "tunnel" where all the fish are swimming above you.  Lane kept pointing out "Nemo" and the sharks.  The Lied Jungle is fun - especially being able to show Lane all the "secret" bridges and passageways.  He had fun :)

Lane loved the penguins - so much so that he just had to get a stuffed penguin from the gift shop.  Katy got a little purse with a snow tiger in it - Katy loves the purse and "Snowy the Snow Leopard" has been Lane's constant companion the past few days.  The penguin has been pretty much forgotten :(

I have a few more cute pictures, including Lane chasing a duck and Brooks and Lane being goofy, but for some reason blogger is not letting me load them.  Grrrr...

We ate at Rick's Cafe Boatyard which was really yummy and fun to eat right alongside the river.  We got home right before bedtime and discovered that Katy had a 103 degree fever.  No wonder she was so good and quiet all day!  She's feeling better now :)

Menu Plan

Here's what we've been eating lately:

No Boil Baked Penne - garlic bread - green beans
King Ranch Chicken - salad - fruit
Peachy BBQ Chicken - rice - fruit
Ham & Cheese Casseroles - fruit - rolls
Sloppy Joes - sweet potato fries - fruit
Taco Salad - quesadillas
Saucy Honey Mustard Chicken - rice - green beans (Lane would only eat this if I called it "Bee Chicken"...you know, honey...bees...)
Pollo Loco - rice - salad
Hamburgers - fruit- cucumber pasta salad
Crockpot Lemon Chicken - egg noodles - salad
BBQ Ham Sandwiches - chips - grapes

Katelyn - 14 months

I feel bad that I'm just now getting around to documenting Katy at 14 months!  Between my computer being down for a few days and lots of family activities, I just haven't had time.  Here she is....

At 14 months, Katy:

-really likes animals.  She loved the petting zoos at the county fair and the state fair!
-loves to give hugs and kisses. 

-is starting to figure out how to get what she wants.
-likes to "cook" when I'm in the kitchen.
-loves having me all to herself while Lane is at preschool :)

-is pretty good at scribbling!  I like it when she colors on paper...but she likes to color on newly-laid laminate flooring the best.
-still uses a pacifier - I've been successful at taking it away in small doses, so hopefully I can keep that up.
-hates being left in the church nursery or at Bible study.  Hopefully this passes soon!

-really enjoyed her first taste of sweet corn.
-spends so much time out in the garden picking tomatoes.  And eating the green ones (she won't touch the ripe ones!).
-is getting ALOT of teeth right now.
-loves to be read to.  Her favorite book is Moo Baa La La La.

-has such cute curls!
-consistently takes a 3 hour nap in the afternoon. 

-is pretty strong!  I have also found that out when she's throwing tantrums :)
-is starting to "talk."  She can't quite get the words out, but she says "thank you", "kitty", "yes", and "no".

LOVE this age - she is learning constantly and always discovering new things.  She is so good about playing on her own when Lane's not around.  But when he is...it's just fight, fight, fight.  Guess that's what I have to look forward to for years to come!

Before and Afterish: Family Room

I am so excited!  Our family room (in the lower level of the house) is finally usable!  I know that it has only been three months since we moved in so I really have no right to complain.  But when you can see the potential every day (and are tired of tripping over millions of toys every day) it seems like a long time.  It is so nice to be able to start organizing and putting everything in it's "proper" place.  Maybe now I can spend some of my cleaning energy actually cleaning, not just managing clutter!

Keep in mind that we are far from done - obviously still need baseboards and the trim around the windows needs to be painted - and there are lots of little things that need to be done!

Some before pictures from last May -

We tore the carpet out with the intention of putting in laminate wood flooring before we moved in.  But...we discovered a leak around the chimney.  That REALLY slowed things down.  The leak turned out to be an easy fix (it just took us a couple of months to figure out the source) - the downspout outside was pointing directly at the chimney, so every time it rained more than 1/4 in., water would leak in. 

We had lots of help from Curtis' dad - he helped paint everything and helped Curtis for a couple of days putting in the floor.  Lane liked to "help" whenever he could :)

Brent Lancaster, my brother-in-law, is a door and window installer and did a great job installing the new windows!

See the ugly old windows with lovely expandable foam holding it together? 

And the "after" photos!

It feels sooo bright, clean and airy now!  I love having a big family room like this - separate areas for tv-watching, playroom, and office.  It's so nice for all of us to hang out in the same room!  And since the stairway is kind of "open" the kids haven't minded playing downstairs while I'm upstairs.  They'll probably have more fun once I get things more organized and not just in a big pile!

I'm having a hard time deciding on accent colors and curtains.  I really like orange and turquoise these days, but I'm not sure if I will like them long enough to actually buy things in those colors!  Most of my old decorating pieces are red.  I don't like red anymore, so I've been spray painting alot of things :) Curtains - I think Roman shades would look nice - but do I want to attempt to make them or should I just try to find some I like?  Ahhh, decisions, decisions. 

I just got the Ikea catalog in the mail so I'm excited to start looking through that and hopefully getting some more ideas!

I told Curtis that now he doesn't have to do anything on the house until after harvest and field work are done.  He was happy.

We do have an extra loveseat...any one need one?  :)