Children's Museum of Indianapolis

With only a few short weeks left before we start school again full-time, we recently took a road trip!  We traveled to my hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana last week for my cousin's wedding. I have to say that both girls were troopers for the 13 hour trip out.  I had coloring books, color-by-numbers, books, and movies for entertainment. Oh, and finger puppets.  The little finger puppets I bought before leaving had the girls in stitches, especially toward the end when they were just sick of being in the car.

Within a day, Mikayla had some sort of stomach bug, so we took things easy initially. Then we started in on the activities and family visits we had planned on. One of the nice things about visitng my hometown is that it is fun to take my girls to some of the places where I had so much fun as a child. To see the delight on their faces just warms a momma's heart! 

Looking up from the bottom: Fireworks of Glass

The first activity we had planned was a trip to the Children's Museum of Indianapolis. My mom had been wanting to take them for a long time, so off we went!  I don't know if it is really the largest children's museum in the world, but it has to be close.  There are five stories that are just packed full of activities for children (and adults) of all ages.  I know that every time I go to the museum, I learn something new!

We started off by visiting the dinosaur exhibit.  There are so many different dinosaur bones to view and touch. We were able to pick up different bones and compare them to our bones, play with models, and compare the different dinosaur eggs. There were even scientists on-hand who were cleaning dinosaur bones and were willing to answer all of our questions.

We moved on to many other exhibits, but some of the classic "must-see" exhibits include the train on the bottom level, the water clock, and the blown-glass sculpture "Fireworks of Glass" that extends for four stories.  My favorite is the Water Clock.  I think I am old enough to remember when it came to the museum, and I remember spending many days waiting for the hour to change so we could watch the water flush out and back into the bowl. Here is a video of how it works:

We also went to the planetarium-- it played an age-appropriate video which included Big Bird and Elmo.  They taught the girls how to find the Big Dipper and the North Star.  There was also some discussion of the differences in gravity on the moon vs planet Earth. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed in there. Susie loved seeing Elmo though!

The science center was a little above the girls' heads but there were some things they really enjoyed.  They sorted play food into the appropriate food groups, played with pulleys, and even built towers from gigantic legos.

Sorting food into food groups

Legos!

At the end of the day, we made sure to spend some time in the Dora and Diego exhibit.  Mikayla and Susannah really had a blast!  There was an area that was intended to encourage increased activity for children (as in, get off the couch). Mikayla loved the monkey bars and the rock wall. There was another area where they could be "animal rescuers" and examine the wild animals.  Susannah wouldn't leave that part of the exhibit. Then, as it happened, we were there for a program where the girls were assigned an animal and had to discover what its favorite food was, where it lived, and what its footprints looked like. They earned a badge for completing the activity and a little book with their spider monkey info. It was a lot of fun, but they were exhausted at the end of it!

Hopefully, I will post more of our little trip soon... in the meantime, what are some favorite places from your childhood?

Summer Adventure

This summer, with two active girls, I have tried to be intentional about planning some day trips where we can spend time together. Summer is flying by, so I want to take a minute to post about a recent adventure we had together. Grandparents who have already heard this story can hear it again- you'll live!

It has been really hot on the East Coast recently (and I mean REALLY hot), but we planned our day to start early so we could go pick some blueberries!  Blueberry season is almost over and Mikayla and Susannah really enjoy them. They did a fantastic job picking, but there is no shade and they were getting hot quickly. So, even though their buckets weren't full, they still had three pounds of blueberries and some peaches to show for their sweaty little faces. After we loaded into the car, we headed over to the park.

I say the word "park," and immediately, Susannah is asking if I will push her on the swings.  I had to explain to her that we weren't going to that type of park.  We were headed to a historical/nature park, where they have converted an old plantation into a park with several nature trails to hike or ride(horses, not bikes). 

My girls have never gone hiking on a nature trail before, so the questions started even as we left the car.  Mikayla's was the funniest,
"Mom.  Are there any venomous snakes here?" 
"No." (I am thinking, No more Animal Planet for her!)
"Are there ANY snakes here?" 
"We aren't going to see any snakes, Mikayla." (You are so loud, they will take flight long before you see them)

Like smart hikers should, we check out the map to pick the path we want to walk. I direct the girls toward one that circles a small pond and is only about a mile long. Walking around the pond gave us ample opportunity to take in the wildlife around us. We see a squirrel first (we don't have them in our yard) and the girls were on the lookout for dragonflies and butterflies. We were walking along when I hear, 
"EEEEeeek!" (what?!)
"Mom! There is a Daddy-LONGLEGS over there!" 
"It's okay, Mikayla, there are lots of them outside. They are part of the world God created."

Mikayla is satisfied by that answer, and we keep walking. As we walk, I notice that Susannah is lagging behind, walking while looking over her shoulder. I try to encourage her to keep up.
"Mom. That daddy longlegs is followin' me!" Yep, the little spider was walking along the same path we were. Finally, we move along and start heading around the end of the pond.  There, slithering off the path, is a BIG, black snake!  Both of the girls see the snake and (surprisingly) completely take it in stride...just part of nature, I guess. We finish up by catching a great view of some turtles sunning themselves on a log over the pond.

Overall, we had a lot fun at the park. Both Mikayla and Susannah were eager to get home so they could tell Jeff what they had seen (Mikayla even brought home a pinecone to show him). Hopefully we will go back soon so we can check out some of the other paths!

What adventures have you had with your children this summer?

Celebrating Independence Day~ Fun & Fireworks!

Growing up, July 4th was one of my favorite holidays.  We did the same thing almost every year...First, there was a parade the whole town turned out to see. Then, we would head to a cookout lunch with grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncles and finish the day with a festival and fireworks. I loved it!

Now, I live about 800 miles from my hometown and we are in the process of making our own traditions. Here is what we did this year...we'll see what sticks and what doesn't!

Learning Stuff-- Assuming we continue with our current curriculum, our girls will study American History around first grade.  Honestly, I can't wait! I love history anyway, but i especially love the history of our founding fathers.  It will be so much fun!  In the meantime, I found a little mini-unit that I worked on with the girls at 2 Teaching Mommies.  It was perfect for Susannah's level.  Mikayla enjoyed the activities too, even though they were a little easy for her. Their favorite thing was the Roll and Graph fireworks. We turned it into a game to see who could roll 10 of the same picture first (Mikayla won, finally).



Susie is sorting her fireworks by size.

 We also checked out some books at the library with a Revolutionary War/ Independence Day theme.  One of the ones we picked was Independent Dames by Laurie Halse Anderson.  It was fascinating to me, but a little over the girls' heads. It tells of the many ways women helped during the Revolutionary War and is packed full of information.

Food-- I wasn't quite up to doing July 4th crafts this year, but we did celebrate with a festive red, white, and blue snack. We used strawberries, marshmallows, and blueberries and placed them on skewers.  It was yummy!  Susie didn't bother with the skewer-- she just found it easier to pick what she wanted from the bowl!  Mikayla found the skewer idea fun and made several! I wish I could link back to the person I got the idea from, but I can't find it now. Bummer.





Fireworks!  We debated about going to fireworks this year. Jeff was working and I was likely going to be trying to keep track of both girls by myself in crazy crowds and traffic.  Thankfully, a friend gave us a great idea of where to go... a local school about a mile from where the fireworks were launched. It was perfect on many levels. First, Jeff's parents came with us-- Granny and Pop-Pop make everything better!  Also, Lori and her family used the same idea she gave us, so my kids LOVED passing time with friends!  Evan and I found out that a football is much harder to catch at dusk and the rest of the kids played some serious "Duck, duck, goose" or "Flynn, Flynn, Maximus" (a game we played at the girls' Tangled party) before the fireworks started. We had to move because of an enormous tree that was blocking our view, but it was otherwise a great spot to watch the light show.



Susie and Granny- I promise that Susie is smiling!



Life is more fun with friends to play with! The little guy in
front is Matthew- July 4th is his birthday! 
In the back row, there is Rachel, Juliet, Mikayla, and Evan.
 Susie was off to the side somewhere.
 

All in all, we had a great celebration-- what about you?







Displaying Independence

From The Activity Mom:

" In honor of Independence Day, the ladies from Mom Loop and I are celebrating with a showcase of ways that our children (and yours) display independence." 

I saw this about a week ago for the first time and it is an awesome idea!  The only problem we have in our house is that I spend more time trying to control some of the girls' activities of independence than celebrating it! 

Caring for the cats!

I joke that Mikayla is five going on twenty-five.  If there is something she sees an adult do, she seems to think that she can do it and do it better!  Although there are some things that we have to frequently discourage her from doing (or trying) on her own-  cutting her own hair, shaving her legs, or using the microwave come to mind- we love to direct her independent nature in a constructive way.

This summer, one of the things we are encouraging Mikayla to do is care for the pets independently and without being asked. We own five cats and two dogs, so it is important that everyone pitch in and help out in their care. Kayla has been doing a great job with this recently. She helps to feed the cats and dogs every day and change their water.  I don't let her change litter boxes, but she will use a pooper scooper for the dog poo outside.  Although we have one dog who is almost fourteen years old and doesn't require much exercise, we have an eleven year old Belgian Malinois that still enjoys a relatively active lifestyle.  Once it has cooled down in the evenings, Mikayla usually asks to go outside and play with Bella.  This is good for Bella and Mikayla both. 

Other activities where Mikayla demonstrates independence already are: fixing herself snacks, folding her own clothes, brushing her teeth without being asked, and taking her own shower (with supervision). Later this summer, she will learn to ride her bike without training wheels-- now THAT is independence! 

Helping a friend by puppy-sitting!

Getting dressed!

Susannah is totally different child in many ways, and this is no exception. We are happy when she will just change her clothes by herself!  We have had two major accomplishments this spring and summer already.  First, Susie potty-trained this spring...almost completely by herself. Within a two-week period, Susie ditched the diapers (day and night).  Also, things have improved dramatically at bedtime.  We used to have to stay in the chair in her bedroom until she fell asleep because it was just easier than running up and down the stairs a gazillion times every night. Now we lie her down, tuck her in, and say her prayers--she goes right to sleep. Other independent activites that she does or we are working on include: cutting with scissors, coloring in the lines, brushing her teeth, showering, and riding her new bicycle (with training wheels).  Now, if only we could get her to stop sucking that thumb!

I love my independent kids! 

Linking up with The Activity Mom

Happy Birthday, Susie Q!

Just two short days ago, my sweet Susannah Grace turned 3 years old! How quickly time flies! I would venture to guess that she has changed more in the past year than she has in the past.  Even up until about 18 months old, Susie was my shy child, and even leaving her in the church nursery with trusted friends could be an "iffy"situation. Now she has come out of her shell so much!  She has truly turned into a class clown, always seeking to make others laugh. She has easily earned the nickname, "Silly Susie!"

Susie at 6 months old, Mikayla was 2 yrs old

Physically, Susannah is growing like a weed these days!  Many times, if we are a little behind on laundry, she can easily wear her sister's shirts and shorts!  Although she looks much as her sister did at the same age, it is easy to tell the difference if you check her eyes... they are a pretty hazel most of the time. The child also talks (expressively with her hands) ALL the time! She is still a little hard to understand over the phone, but easily understood when she is in the same room.

Susie at 1 yr old-- Bald is Beautiful!

Although she won't officially start preschool until the fall, it amazes us what Susie learns just by hanging out with her big sister. She shocked me recently by pointing to different letters and naming them to me!  This was shocking only because I haven't worked with her very much on letter recognition. Susie loves to count things and frequently will sit and count the "boys" and "girls" wherever we happen to be-- church, the grocery store, or a cousin's dance recital. She loves puzzles of all kinds and building with duplos is a favorite activity as well.

Other things Susie loves:  Susie Q loves horses... when Mikayla has her lessons, Susie gets a short pony ride and has NO FEAR!  She loves to brush them and give them treats too!  Also, she loves to be "Mommy" to ALL of her many baby dolls (I think she has opened an orphanage or something, because there are a lot of them!).  She is always telling us what her babies are up to!

At age 2, we still have to protect that little head from sunburn!
There is no fear of the ocean though!

Like her big sister, Susannah's birthday was on a busy Sunday. We had Sunday school and church in the morning, then a nice nap in the afternoon (I love naptime!).  She had a little family party at her Granny's house where she ate a HUGE slice of cake!  Mikayla pointed out, "It's ALL about the cake for Susie!" The child takes such pleasure in eating her sweets-cake, ice cream, and especially cupcakes!  We watched Susie ride her new "big-girl" bike and then headed home. It was a great day! 

Susie wanted a "horsie" cake--Yummy!

Her new Olivia doll!

New Bike!  It was picked out by her big sister! :)

I love my little princess soo much and count every minute I spend with her a blessing! 

Growing a Garden

Millie, Millie,oh so sillie

How does your garden grow?

"With green peppers and watermelon,

and nary a thing in a row."

That's my tribute to "Silly Mille." About a month ago, Mikayla asked me how to spell "Millie." Unsuspecting of anything life-changing, I told her.  She responded with, "I like it!  You can call me Mille from now on."  I thought it would be a passing phase, however, she has family and friends actually referring to her as "Millie" now.  Silly girl...I hope she outgrows it at some point and I still refer to her as Mikayla ALL of the time.  I might just be more stubborn than her-- we will see!

Anyway, so I mentioned in my Yucky Worms! post that we were working on some gardening stuff.  Actually, we completed one of our first unit studies for the summer. I think unit studies are a fun way to continue learning during the summer, without the pressure of the school year.  Basically, they are topic-oriented, not subject-oriented. I let my girls pick a subject, in this case gardening, and we do all learning around that topic.  It is a lot of fun, and there are many out there to choose from.  Even better than the great variety is that many awesome bloggers let you download them for FREE!  God has created many talented moms and teachers who put a lot of work in these unit studies and then offer them to the rest of us so we don't have to do it on our own-- how AWESOME!

Here it is, from 1+1+1=1, the Garden Preschool Pack. 

We started with a trip the library for some books on gardening. Although we couldn't find the ones recommended in the preschool pack, there were several that we brought home to read.

Here, Mikayla is matching the parts of a flower to the names. She learned these pretty quickly. She also learned how plants start from a seed and grow to become what we see above the ground. 

Susie is doing some pre-writing stuff...she is tracing the "water" from the watering can to the flowers!  She does such a good job with this-- FOCUSED!  





We missed the deadline for it this year, but maybe next year the girls and I will participate in the Homeschool Garden Village Challenge.  We will take the time to show the girls how we plan and plant our garden.  As it is, they have learned so much this year.  Last year was our first year with a garden, so everything was new.  Now we are able to take the time to show the girls how to care for the garden so it has the best chance of success.  So far, we have already been able to make a few dishes from our garden veggies-- it makes supper so much more fun to know we grew the food ourselves.

"The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail."  Isaiah 58:11

Happy Father's Day!

One interesting thing about dads...they teach you about our Heavenly Father's grace long before you are even capable of understanding it.  Especially dads with little girls!  I see this all the time with our daughters and my husband.  My girls know it too... they will tell you in a heartbeat that dad "doesn't stop loving me when I disobey him, he always forgives me."  That doesn't mean he is a pushover (all the time), but they know that he will always listen to them and forgive any wrongdoings. Sometimes I need to pay closer attention to this... I tend to want to hold on to the bad stuff a little longer than I should.  It is a joy to see my girls grow up in the loving arms of their earthly father, even as we point them toward their Heavenly Father.

A couple of years old, but one of my favorites!

I am not sure who wrote it, but I like this little poem:

A dad is a person

Who's loving and kind,

And often he knows

What you have on your mind.

He's someone who listens,

Suggests and defends...

A dad can be one

Of your very best friends!

He's proud of your triumphs,

But when things go worng,

A dad can be patient

And helpful and strong.

In all that you do

A dad's love plays a part-

There's always a place for him

Deep in your heart-

And each year that passes,

You're even more glad,

More grateful and proud

Just to call him your dad!

Here are the cards the girls made for Father's Day-

Susannah colored some papers to be made into a coupon book! We used "hugs & kisses," "a day for crabbing," and "a day at the beach."  It was basic, but fit with Susannah's level of manual dexterity (she was really checking out some scissors!).

Mikayla wrote a book "My Dad and Me" that talks about things she likes to do with Jeff. For example, on one page I wrote, "My Dad and I like to eat_________________________."  She writes the word she wants (salad) and draws a picture illustration. It was great fun and we will have to do it again for some silly kids moments! The questions could be changed to suit almost any occasion.



I thank God every day that my girls have such a loving example to look up to! I hope that as they grow, they will not settle for anything less than a husband who shows them this same love!