Creative Kids

I used to be a horder and unfortunately I think i've past this  habit onto my kids. Whenever something new comes into the house be it food, electrical goods or gifts with interesting packaging  my three little girls have an almost compulsion to take and turn said packaging into something new and exciting.
The majority of the time i'm inclined to say no but as we all know kids can very persuasive.
So I have a house full of beaded jewellery, toilet roll binoculars, miniature shoe box doll houses, cut outs of hearts and squares stars and tiny little pictures they've drawn, egg box creatures, cardboard glasses even a cereal box headstone (don't ask) and much much more.
But when you have kids that like to create you have to go with the flow, let them do their thing and enjoy the results.
Today I was given a real treat.  Middle daughter kept a box that had the Mr and Mrs cups inside  given to husband and me as an anniversary gift last year. (It was a pretty box and even I couldn't really bare to throw it away).
My little gem decided to turn the box onto a puppet theatre. She made several scene backdrops and found an old puppet of mine. She then made tickets and arrows to direct us to where it would be in the house. Oldest daughter was the 'ticket giver' and 'ticket stamper' (a hole punch was used for that).
The play started at 3 O'clock sharp and had two intervals.
It was obvious that she had very carefully practised the whole thing so the whole family was able to enjoy a funny, clever play with audience participation.
So fun was the play that she inspired her younger sister to immediately go and write her own story based on the play.
I think when we have children it's very easy to see the world through their new young eyes, the first time they feel sand in their toes or go in the water..... We enjoy these things with them as if it's our first time too. But as they get older i'm finding I have to remind myself of this. Everything is still new and exciting to them even when they are 7 or 9 or 11 and they are constantly looking for new and exciting things to discover. Maybe that's the key to creativity, to always have young eyes and to look at everything as if it's the first time we've seen it too. 

Playing at the Table

Kids really can play anywhere and with anything! I don't usually allow toys at the table but as Teenager is off school for half term we are a bit more relaxed. So fireman Sam and Elvis joined the breakfast table along with some finger people too.
FINGER PEOPLE..... who invented them?  They're everywhere I turn,even when there are no toys brought to the table finger people always seem to manage to sneak their way there.
What to do? Join in!

When Hubby Put His Back Out

When hubby put his back out I thought he would finally be able to get the rest he's needed for a really long time. I truly believe that sometimes if you overwork yourself and don't give your body a break then God finds a way. "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures" Psalm 23:2.
Well thankfully hubby did get a rest, a really good one. He caught up on loads of the paper work that he's been meaning to do for ages all in a semi flat position and laptop nearby.
I was at hand to get him everything he needed and I really didn't mind..... To begin with it made me much more efficient than I had been recently,(i'm thankful for that) having to be super organised with homeschooling, tidying, cooking, cleaning all while tending to poor pained hubby. He was very gracious and kept apologising "i'm sorry you have to take care of me", but 'in sickness and in health' right? He'd do the same for me, and has done in the past. But here's the twist, after a while as much as I love my dear hubby it did get pretty tiresome going up and down stairs to fetch him things or bring him things or help him sit up or help him lie back down etc..... I couldn't even really get annoyed because he was just too sweet although I was beginning to get just a little eensy weensy teensy bit frustrated. Now I've got kids so i've done the broken sleep thing, the doing things around a baby's schedule thing and all the other things. I've done it FIVE times so really I should have the patience of a saint, but the more I think about how much time i've spent taking care of my kids the more I realised one very important and very different element between them and my lovely hubby.
BABIES ARE CUTE.
They're a bundle of absolute adorable squishy loveliness that's how we get through it. They look at us with their tiny little vulnerable faces, chubby little fingers outstretched letting us know they're hungry or tired and through our hazed half opened eyes we love them more and more. This is clearly how it's supposed to be, how God designed it, otherwise with all the little mites put us through we wouldn't want anymore. Would we?

I Like Make Up!

I like make up! I don't wear it everyday but when I do I feel polished, sophisticated a grown up. I didn't really start using it until I had one if those free consultations you get at department stores a few Weeks before my wedding (age 20). I did use mascara and lipstick but that was the extent of my make up knowledge. So as you can imagine it took a lot of practice before I could recreate what the nice young lady in the department store did. But thankfully for my wedding day I managed to pull it off. I've gone through many experiments since then (haven't we all?)  Make up too heavy, eyebrows too thin..... Nowadays I go for the natural look, trying to enhance what's there not cover it up. I was explaining this to my husband who was telling me I don't need make up (sweet I know) but still, I want to make my face appear smooth young and blemish free. Ok ok ok so i'm vain I admit it.
I think my husband had it right when he said "you're just trying to photo shop your face with make up right?"
I guess I am!

Hand Me Downs

My first child is a boy, a tall, bushy haired skinny thing (with a few biceps he's quite proud of). We kept pretty much all of his clothes for possible future boys, but then I had three girls in a row, lots and lots of pink and frills and flowers and ribbons and pretty, pretty pretty. When we had baby number five a boy, out came those clothes from 12 years before only they weren't all as wonderful as I remembered and they were mostly the wrong season. So new clothes were bought and some old ones were used too - great! But please tell me, am I a bad mother if I let my three year old boy wear some hand me down clothes that weren't from his brother? Is it all right to put him in pink pyjamas? Have I done that? Well, er nobody saw only family at home! Will he be scarred? No i'm sure he'll be just fine. As long as he doesn't find the home movie footage of him tap dancing in big sisters pretty cream tap shoes. oh dear!

Quick Fun Music

Here's a quick fun activity to do with left over plastic eggs, you know the ones you buy your kids from the supermarket with the surprise inside. I bought my three year old a pepper pig one and instead of throwing away the egg decided out could be added to his musical instruments. Have a go. Easy and fun.

Back to Blogging?

2011 was my last post! Wow has it really between that long since my last blog? Life really gets in the way if you let it, so i'm resolving to not let that happen. 2013 is here another year ahead of me and there are so many possibilities, I will try very hard to turn the possibilities into realities.I hope this year is a fulling one to you all

Autumn Activities

We've been very busy this autumn with the beginning of a new school year and all that entails with three girls at home. I've been trying to teach Baby Boy to read too by showing him a video and flash cards from the your baby can read system; (it does work if you're consistent)  http://www.yourbabycan.co.uk/.

We've been going on walks in the woods, collecting apples from the zoo and our own garden which leads to lots of pealing, chopping and creating as many different things with apples as I can think of.

  We've been bird watching ( the beautiful Jay has returned), squirrel watching, catching frogs and caterpillars.

There has been dressing up, harvesting the carrots Husband and the girls planted and star gazing ( we found the Square of Pegasus).

There is still so much more to do, we want to make Christmas cards and Christmas presents, mini Christmas cakes and other sweet treats, decorate the house and create a Christmas scene out of polystyrene with little toy figures.

This has probably been our busiest autumn maybe because the children are older and need a lot more to focus on, but we're having fun and working hard.

Psalms 90:17

And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the Work of our hands upon us; yea, the Work of our hands establish thou it.

Holiday Review

I was looking back at my old posts and remembered that I said I would let you know how it went bringing Baby Boy's cake on holiday in the car.

Well it went just fine, We got it there safe and sound completely in tact. We went on to have a fun filled holiday and Baby Boy even got to meet the object of his obsession as well as receive lots of Fireman Sam presents.

Is he going to grow up to be a fireman? He is truly, truly obsessed and I'm not exaggerating. He asks every single day if he can watch Fireman Sam ( of course he doesn't get to) but still he asks.

I take comfort in the fact that his interest is in something that is wholesome as opposed to something wild, crazy or overtly silly like much of the stuff on t.v.

Anyway here he is having a happy time on holiday.     

I'll have my cake and eat it.

 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.

 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them

John 13:16 & 17

Mum Donnalds

Here Are The Pancakes

Half term has been great, we've had a week of lazy mornings and I for one have loved every single one of them.

An owl and an elephant

An owl and some fruit

 I made the pancakes like I said the other day and these are the best one I've done so far. The kids loved them and were even throwing ideas in as I was making them.

So here they are:

Watermelon and a rhino

Bananas and a strawberry

Owl and Winnie The Pooh

More watermelons. I didn't have chocolate chips
 so we used chocolate spread.

A dolphin

These are the condiment bottles I used, they are very cheap
 to buy and make it easy to make the pancakes you want. 

Hi Again

Hi everyone, I've been super busy and don't seem to get the opportunity to get to the computer. Even now I'm just about to make some pancakes for the kids. Check out this blog for some great ideas to make fun pancakes for your kids or even yourself. http://jennipriceillustration.blogspot.com/

Here are some I made a while ago. I'll let you know how I get on today.

Holiday Time Is Here

Holiday season is upon us and I for one can't wait. It's been quite a week just preparing for the holiday, I like to get all the laundry done and the house cleaned so when we come home all we need to do is unpack straight into the washing machine.
I made a birthday cake for Baby Boy who is about to turn 2. It took me from lunch time to tea time to decorate it but I think it will be worth it to see the look on his face when he gets to see his favourite character as a cake. We will be bringing it on holiday in a large cake box in the car ( I'll let you know how that goes).
Everyone is excited I think I'm the most excited as I won't have to cook for a week!
HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE.

Innocence

I would like to share my new trick that I've just discovered to get toddlers to do things they don't want to when they are feeling a bit strong willed.
My son Baby Boy, (who by the way I will have to stop calling Baby Boy soon as he is nearly two)  has reached that age where self will has well and truly kicked in. For example if it's nap time and he doesn't want to leave the fun he may fuss a bit, or he doesn't want to finish all his meal and he just wants to skip along to dessert he can be quite determined.
Well I discovered that sometimes his toys or even a picture can be be very persuasive.
I was out with the girls and Baby Boy at a fast food restaurant and all Baby boy wanted was to drink his milkshake, I said to him a few times " eat your fries" but he was quite slow and not very enthusiastic.
He then became preoccupied with the characters on the kiddy meal box so I made them talk to him, he (loves that sort of thing), and the "character" told him in a very animated voice to eat his fries. Baby Boy obliged and ate lots of fries with some extra encouragement from the box.
Baby Boy was looking right at the box as if it really was talking to him. It then told him to eat his nuggets. He looked at the nuggets and seemed to consider this for a moment or two and then proceeded to pick up and eat his chicken nugget.
It works in many other situations too. Baby Boy became attached to a balloon he got from the restaurant and wanted to take it to bed for his nap, he kept calling for the "baooo baooo" but I knew this would not be conducive with sleep, so I put the balloon in the next room up high and let the balloon tell him "say goodbye" which he did. Then the balloon said "go to bed" to which Baby Boy responded "odaay" = okay.
His favourite fireman toy tells him to sit down when it's time to be still, the pictures on his bedroom wall tell him goodnight and many of his other toys keep him in check.
I know this will wear off soon but it's so fun at the moment to see the look of awe in his eyes when his toys or a character in a book starts talking directly to him.
Children truly are full of innocence and it is one of my favourite things to see.

Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.  Jeremiah 2:35

Making Fun

We were all at home the other day, the day was very bright and hot and we were enjoying our lovely garden. But Husband was super busy tidying up the garden instead of relaxing. Now don't get me wrong he did a great job clearing away leaves and such but I decided that it was my job to MAKE him have some fun. So I gave the girls some washing up bottles, filled them with water and told them to "get daddy".
The look of shock on his face was priceless.
But I couldn't leave him defenceless so I gave him a bottle too, stood back and took a bunch of photos. Of course I didn't get wet at all; Well I was the one holding the camera and we couldn't let that get wet now could we? It didn't hurt that I was also standing right behind Baby Boy who didn't want to get wet either.




Let's get him

 


Hey girls what's going on?




Daddy's turn now.




So much fun.





Down the back; the best place




I agree!




Not me I'm holding the camera.





Teenager joins the fun.



Being Six

Youngest Girl had her 6th birthday.

Her birthday is at the end of June so she always starts her countdown the on the 1st of June.



Opening first presents.





Well her day finally arrived and she had a lovely day, she got many of the things she wanted as I've been paying attention and buying things on her little list for about 2 months.

Here is some of what her day looked like.




My one legged bear

 

 The birthday child is always king or queen for the day, they have pancakes and sweet cereal as we homeschool they get a day off with fun activities. This time was a little different as they ALL had pancakes because I'm trying something new, I got the idea from http://jennipriceillustration.blogspot.com/ have a look your kids will love it. We had rabbits, flowers,frogs and whatever else I could make with the left over batter.

Youngest Daughter loves to dress up so she got a pink velvet skirt and matching neck tie with a large birthday cake pink velvet hat. She has been bugging me for a watch so that was one of her gifts too.





As you can see she is a bit of a poser.



This was supposed to be a frog.

 

 

These were some mini cupcakes I made, we ate these at lunch time because Husband and Teenager were at work and school and cake is always needed in some form or other on a birthday after a meal.        



Here we are about to have the birthday meal,

and here I am about to deliver the eagerly awaited cake.

Look at this face, we are singing 'Happy Birthday'
 her cake is in front of her and she couldn't be more pleased.

Again with the posing. Youngest Daughter wanted a butterfly cake so I googled  different ones and settled for this one. I used pre-made roll out icing this time and I think it turned out pretty good. Quite tasty too.