Kids Websites for Learning and Fun.

Just in time for summer!  Here's a  few of our favorite educational and fun websites

 Starfall's Learn to Read with phonics:  Caleb used this site at school in Kindergarten.  Great for  beginning readers
.http://www.starfall.com/

Dancemat Learn to Type for Kids.  Super fun BBC typing tutor.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/

First School. ws has terrific preschool and early elementary level worksheets, curriculum and crafts- great for homeschooling.

http://www.first-school.ws/

Multiplication.com has over 60  super cool math games to help learn  addition, subtraction, and Multiplication facts.
http://www.multiplication.com/interactive_games.htm

Other favorites are of course PBS kids
http://pbskids.org/

and BOZ
http://www.bozthebear.com/fun/games.asp

Samuel is 4 Years Old!

♪♫ All Aboard, right on time, Samuel took a ride on the Dinosaur train!  ♪♫

Samuel turned 4 years old!  He wanted his birthday theme to be his favorite song; The Dinosaur Swing,  and his favorite show;  The Dinosaur Train.  Festivities began with decorating the kitchen nook to look a little like the Dinosaur Train (it's a PBS preschool TV show).  The balloons are suppose to be dinos looking out the windows. I repeated the dinosaur song on the CD player all day.  I think I have the rap memorized now, "Raptile, what is is to me.  I've had enough, they're history!"  After school  I took the boys and a friend to ride an antique carrousel and a train that drives around the mall.  It was Awana night, so Samuel brought dino cupcakes to share with his Cubbie friends.   Later we had a volcano cake- complete with dry ice "smoke" and a dinosaur train.  Samuel requested a "giant meatball"  with Penne and Alfredo for birthday dinner, so Thursday I cooked a 21/2 pounder to fit the bill. Saturday we ate dinner at Red Robin (love that place- kids always eat free) and Samuel got the whole birthday treatment.   Birthday activities  continued on Sunday.   We headed to Champion park where the boys dug up dino bones and created a river system in the giant sand pit..

Easter

He is risen!  We had an great Easter this year. I was amazed to  hear Caleb share the story of Christ's  life, death and resurrection with his little brother Samuel as we opened resurrection eggs during the week.  Saturday we went to an "Easter Eggstravaganza" where the boys ate a yummy breakfast, played games,  made  crafts,  and saw a Passion play.  Sunday I filled in and taught Samuel's Sunday school class. The kids were just old enough to really understand the miracle of the resurrection.  We reenacted the women coming to the empty tomb and being surprised!  Those 4 year olds showed me the enthusiasm I should have at Easter.
 
Samuel survived a whole morning of leaving his shirt-tail tucked in so I promptly let him change to some play clothes.  We spent the afternoon running in the spray park, bird watching and digging in the sand at one of our favorite parks.

AWANA

 "Awesome!"

Congratulations to Samuel on his big win at the annual AWANA Pinewood Car Derby!  He took first place in speed with his lightning speed car. 

Samuel's car "Blue Storm" was the fastest in the Cubbies division.

Blackberry Cobbler

I couldn't resist the blackberries on sale for .88 a box. I bought almost a whole flat!   My mother always made cobbler with a biscuit or lattice pie crust top.  This was definitely  faster and much different than  mom's, but wow!   It takes 2 minutes to get this in the oven- and it comes out amazing!  My three year old loved putting all the berries on top (and sneaking a few along the way).  We've made it twice in one week!

 EASY BLACKBERRY COBBLER

1/2 c. butter
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
2/3 c. milk
16 oz. frozen (thawed) or fresh blackberries 

Melt butter in a 2 quart casserole. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and milk in a small mixing bowl, mix well.Pour mixture over melted butter, do not stir. Spoon blackberries over batter; do not stir.
Bake at 350°F. for 45 minutes or until golden brown.

Sorry no photo- it was gone too fast!

Pass on the envelope, please.

Today, while doing some much needed paper shredding, I made a pile of unused return envelopes.  It’s one of those annoying little things that I have always just ignored.  I was a little surprised at how many there were.  I thought, “There has to be some brilliant use for these wastes of paper!”

Here’s what I came up with so far:

1. Let your kids use them for a game of post office, or babies to crumple and throw around.  (My boys loved playing with the blue envelope of coupons that comes every month as well.)
2. Use them for (drum roll, please) mailing correspondence.  You have to figure out a way to deal with the window- like put a label on it or actually write the address on the contents behind the window.  Either way it really doesn’t look very fabulous- especially after you have taken a black sharpie to the bar codes so you letter to Aunt Suzie doesn’t end up at the publishers clearing house or your cell company.  The post office scans those codes and may not even need the address!
3. Use them for your grocery list and put any coupons that you will need on your trip in the envelope- or if you are on a budget- the amount of cash you can spend.
4. You could use them to separate coupons, spending money, or receipts by category or month.
5. Store tiny things like screws, washers, seeds, spare keys and tiny Lego pieces.

Still….  There has to be something a little less practical that I am missing.  Also, what am I going to do with all these envelopes once they are filled with stuff?  Photo Storage boxes are too narrow- I already tried it. Anybody have any fresh ideas?

Ornaments

Every year I take the boys to pick out a Hallmark ornament after Christmas.  This year we did it as a New Years Day excursion.  Samuel's choice will go nicely with last years classic Fisher Price school bus.  This See 'n Say really works, and sounds exactly the way I remember!  Caleb's Camp Snoopy goes nicely with Owen's vast array of Peanuts ornaments.