Our poor little guy!

Well this is Little Loaf after his first real crash. We were getting ready to go to a play date and walked out the front door. He jumped on his scooter and drove off the 4 cement steps landing on his face. He was so quick, I reached for him but he was already on the ground. I freaked out and called 911. A fire truck showed up with 5 very large firemen. They all told me stories about their boys being daredevils. We did have to take Little Loaf to the pediatrician but he was feeling much better. In fact he wouldn't sit still for the doctor.  Freckle Foot learned a very valuable lesson that day. If you go to the doctor's office they give you lollipops. She has been asking me every morning if we get to go to the doctor today.

Freckle Foot's Happy Place

We went to the beach, not Freckle Foots favorite place. However we did find her happy place.  She loved the Carousel. She was so excited she could hardly contain herself, she leaned over and hugged me and told me she loved me all the while giggling and shaking with excitement.

Now all she talks about is riding the horses. I think we are going to make some trips to local Carousels. I have never seen Freckle Foot so happy before. It brought up tears for me to see her so happy.

Travel Activities for toddlers

We are off to the ocean again. The first family vacation since Freckle Foot was 11 months old. I am excited and a little nervous. If you have read our blog you know Freckle Foot is not too fond of the beach. We think it is the wind but since she is 3 she can't quite tell us all the details. So in preparation for the long car ride here are the pictures of all the activities I crammed into a gallon size zip lock bag.

 These are a bunch of cutting cards that I made out of copy paper, stickers and a marker. Freckle Foot is just starting to get the hang of cutting. The Melissa and Doug sissors can cut paper but she won't be able to cut anything else in the car. I hope she likes them.

The book on the left Sponge Bob water pen activity, the pen makes all the colors show up so it looks like she is coloring. The Dora explorer book on the right you scratch the page with the wood pencil and the color shows up. I tried this one out at dinner one night and there was one problem. If you leave the Dora pages in a hot car it is heat sensitive too and all the color shows up.

 From Left to right. We have long balloons to make balloon animals. Coloring pages cut into 5x4 to fit the mini clip board. I also picked up some mini colored pencils that are not pictured.  Water color pictures. I used water color pencils to outline the pictures then I cut sponges into small squares and soaked them in water. Freckle Foot can rub the pictures with the wet sponge to "color" the pictures. There are a few pipe cleaners. Kids always love pipe cleaners.

Top left we have a word search. Although Freckle Foot can't do a word search she can search for letters A, B, and C and circle them. Pom poms are always fun. Fruit loops to make necklaces I forgot to picture the string. It's a little hard to see but I made a snake out pipe cleaner and he can be bent into the shapes on the foam sheets. Freckle Foot can also cut up the foam sheets. Freckle Foot can make a lollipop last for a hour. Clothes pins can be hours of fun for Little Loaf. And last but not least painter tape. Tape like pom poms is fun. 

Well that should keep the kids entertained. I have a few more activity bags packed with toys but I have run out of time to take pictures. We are off to the beach.

Strolling around

In an effort to rotate toys I put the stroller away for a few months. I pulled it out the other day and the kids had a great time pushing each other around the house. The stroller is for dolls so both the kids well exceed the weight limit. It's amazing that the stroller is holding up. Freckle Foot wanted Little Loaf to push her in the stroller, although he understood the concept and wanted to follow his sisters order. He wasn't strong enough to push her so she had to scoot around the house while he grunted behind her. strolling

Helping himself

Little Loaf decided to help himself to the some homemade granola bars. He actually got a stool from the dining room and pulled it up to the counter. Good thing I caught him or he would of munched on the whole batch.

Our trip to the Ocean

Our annual trip to Ocean Shores Little Loaf is hanging with his little Cousin P. They are exactly 6 months apart and love each other.

 Freckle Foot and Cousin E found another beach fort to play in this year. Freckle Foot enjoyed the beach a little more than last year. The trick was taking her to the beach when it wasn't very windy.

She loved digging in the sand. We had to make a few holes big enough for her to fit her whole body in. After days at the beach we hung out at the condo.

  Freckle foot was very generous sharing her pop cycle with "the babies" as she calls them.

The babies were having fun peeking at each other. They would take turns climbing through the middle of the table. It was a great way to start our summer.

Every time we spend with family we end up playing a game called Zonk. It's a dice game that we get a little competitive about. Freckle Foot found her own games to play with the dice. She lined them all up on the coaster. Why buy toys when you have coasters and dice. Freckle Foot put all the dice in her brothers dirty sock then transferred them to a cup. What fun!

Cuz she's so dang cute

Freckle Foot was being silly and I was able to get this cute shot of her. I have it on my background of my computer. Her dress is so retro.

I was a really good parent before I had kids

Before I had kids I swore there were things my kids would never do or have. Then I had kids and it changed everything. Freckle Foot won't give up her bottle. I almost had her off bottles and then Little Loaf showed up and it wasn't fair that he got to have one and she couldn't. It is her only comfort object. She has never been interested in a special stuffed animal or blanket. So she still gets bottles and I cringe. But on those really crummy days when all she does is whine and complain, a bottle seems to be her reset button. Give her a bottle of milk and she is a pleasant child... most of the time.

I swore my kids wouldn't have pacifiers.  Freckle Foot would have nothing to do with pacifiers after about 3 months. I patted myself on the back as a good mother. Because pacifiers are bad for kids teeth right? Little Loaf on the other hand loves his pacifier. One day he came crawling into the kitchen from the living room, pulled on my pant leg and grunted. I followed him and his pacifier had rolled under the couch and he was determined to get it. He kept grunting and trying to crawl under the couch. Until I saved the pacifier so he could go play with some toys.

I really really never thought I would have a 3 year old in diapers...CRINGE. Freckle Foot just isn't ready yet. She is getting there. For some reason when we go out to eat at a restaurant she tells me she has to go to the bathroom. Low and behold she will sit on a public toilet but refuses to sit on the big toilet at home. It's it suppose to be the other way around? Don't people have phobia about public toilets. Just when you think you have things figured out these kids though you a curve ball. 

I tell all these stories to my pediatrician hoping he will be horrified and give me some good advice. His advice is they won't go to college with bottles, pacifiers, and diapers in hand. I still cringe.

Little Loaf's first haircut from Dad

Back in March......
Little Loaf's hair was hanging in his eyes so it was time for a his first haircut. L had said a while ago that he wanted to give Little Loaf his haircuts. I cringed a little, all that sweet baby hair. His first hair cut means he's not really a baby anymore, an official toddler.

..

I was so busy taking pictures that I forgot about keeping a lock of his hair. Luckily Freckle Foot was busy picking it up off the deck.

Here's my little man now. All neat and trim just like his Daddy.

Technical Difficulty

Well I am not sure what is going on but I haven't been able to upload pictures from my computer to the blog. I sit at the computer doing trying to figure it out and I get no where. It's very frustrating.

Flour Fun

This is one of Little Loaf's first high chair activities. I had that bag of flour left over that Freckle Foot play with while I did my Christmas baking.

Both the kids were very content. In the end,  I just patted them down to get the flour off and swept the deck. We all enjoyed this activity.

Salty and Sweet

Freckle Foot

Little Loaf

Well I was just looking at pictures of the kids when they were born. I get this nostalgic feeling that never existed on the day of their birth because I was too anxious about their arrival but it’s there now. I know 30 years from now I will look back and think this was my favorite time in our lives. Everyday is hard, it’s hard to get everything done, in the moment , the hour, the day, the week. It’s hard being tired all the time, it’s hard feeling run down all the time, it’s hard to feel like you are constantly under a time crunch, get them down for a nap, diapers changed, food prepared. What I do like is Freckle Foot staying in her PJ’s all day and I don’t care, because it doesn’t matter. I get to play peek a boo with Little Loaf on the floor. I can hear them laughing together while I make dinner at 9 am in the morning.  Because that is when I had the energy to make it. Life is salty and sweet.

Rock and pocket charts

Freckle Foot is on the landing in our stairwell. She has wanted to play with her "rocks" so I put her on the landing because they are choking hazards for Little Loaf.  There is a gate that you can't see at the bottom of the stairs. Just to keep her interested in hanging out there I put up the red pocket chart that I got from Target. The pocket chart is really flimsy I would love to get one from Lakeshore Learning. The color cards she is playing with are from Homeschool Creations. This kept her entertained for a while. Then she decided she wanted to throw the "rocks" at the wall. We found a new activity after we cleaned up.

Spelt Flour Sourdough Waffles

My husband loves waffles so I adapted this recipe from a friend who I will call Little Sis.  She is the little sister my parents never gave me but I was lucky enough to find along the way. The original recipe is delicious

Original Sour Dough Waffles

1/2 cup warm water
1 package dry yeast (2 tsp)
1 cup butter milk
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar

2 eggs
1/2 tsp baking soda

 Rita's Spelt Flour Sour Dough Waffles

1/2 cup warm water
1 package dry yeast (2 tsp)
2 cups warmed butter milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 cups Spelt flour
1/4 cup ground flax seed
2 eggs
1/2 tsp baking soda

Use a large mixing bowl- the batter will rise and double it's original volume
1. Put the water in the mixing bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. Let stand to dissolve for abut 5 minutes.
2. Heat the milk till luke warm in the microwave.
3. Add the milk, butter, salt, sugar, and flour to the yeast mixture and beat until smooth. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let stand over night at room temperature.
4. Just before cooking the waffles add 2 eggs and the 1/2 tsp baking soda.

This makes a pretty big batch I am not sure how many. There are always left over waffles that I throw in the freezer. Just put them in the toaster to reheat. Enjoy~

Linen Closet- inspiration for spring cleaning

I am not sure what possessed me to clean out the linen closet but man does that feel good. I use everything in this closet now. I took out all the items I don't use. OK, minus a couple of wool blankets. Now I am not sure what to do with my table clothes? Where do I put them? I don't want to throw them away but I can't really use them with small children in the house. Where do you hide them?  Oh if only the whole house could be this clean and organized all the time. This closet inspired me to clean and organize a few other drawers in the kitchen. It feels great to open a drawer and know it's deep cleaned. Finally a satisfying moment as a Stay-at-home-mom.

stomach flu

son of a ....Little Loaf just threw up like a gallon of fluid. I promise this is the last post on this subject.

Stomach Flu

Well I won't provide pictures of what we have been up to for the last four days. We all have the stomach flu. It started with Little Loaf, then me, Freckle Foot, then L. It has not been a pretty picture. I can't even count the loads of laundry I have done in the last few days. I lost count of how many times I have to change all of our sheets, towels, blankets, clothes, PJ's. I cringe every time I give the kids milk. I hate baby vomit. There are lots of things I don't like doing but baby vomit is at the top of my list. It's 10am and I am hoping that it's over. Please let it be over. Please let them sleep through the night. Hope no one was trying to eat while reading this post.

Granny Squares Doll Blanket

This is my first crocheting project. My mother in law came down a couple of weeks ago to teach me how to crochet granny squares.  Freckle Foot was very excited to finally have me make her something. Every time I am working on something Freckle Foot asks "Mommy is that for me?" she was delighted when I finally said yes. As soon as I was finished and handed it to her she said "mommy make me another one". I love that she is not shy about asking for what she wants. As she gets older I hope she is able to continue to asking for what she wants and asking for more.

The beauty in weeds

The weather has been so nice this winter we have been going for walks.  This bouquet of flowers came home with us. Freckle Foot loves to collect flowers on our walks. I try to teach her not to pick flowers out of peoples gardens. When she saw the beautiful yellow flowers in the grass she was so excited. I told her she could pick all the yellow flowers she wanted. Really she is doing the neighborhood a service picking the dandelions before they go to seed.

My funny boy!

Baby Activity

We got this container with rings from our neighbor. There were only a couple of rings that came with the toy and Little Loaf wanted to do more. I rounded up all the baby food lids I could find. This is one of his favorite activities.

Tweet Tweet Needle Case

I made two of these wool felt needle cases for a couple of my friends. It was a really fun and quick project. I used a pattern out of the Felt Wee Folks book. Originally it was supose to be a mini purse but I saw someone make a case for their sewing needles. I can't find the site but if I do I will provide the link

 I have all the felt cut out to make two more cases.  There is an owl pattern in the book that looks really cute. I will post them when I am done.

Broccoli Salad and Baked Potatoes

I have heard one of the ways to save money on grocery is to meal plan around the weekly sales adds. I do my meal planning once a month because it is hard for me to get to make multiple trips to the store. This week I was able to take advantage of a sale Fred Meyers was having.  Broccoli was .69 a pound and baked potatoes for .10 a pound.


I converted another recipe from my friend Managing Chaos.

Broccoli Salad
2 heads raw broccoli, stems trimmed
10 slices crisp bacon, chopped ( I omit the bacon to make it vegetarian)
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
1 cup mayonnaise
2 Tb white vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup raisins

Rinse the broccoli, cut into bite size pieces.
Mix sugar, white vinegar and raisins together for dressing.
Mix all together and chill.
I find this salad will only last over night in the frig. The broccoli begins to get soggy but some of my friends really like it a couple of days later.

Then baked potatoes and dressed them up with shredded cheese, green onions, some salad crunchy mix, and sour cream. It made a filling meal and it was cheap.

Little Loaf turns 1 year old

Another late post. Little Loaf turned 1 year old in February. He really liked his cake. I had so much fun making this truck for him. The side panels are made out of graham crackers and the dirt is chocolate cake crumbled up.

We had a small party with family. Little loaf was very excited to receive a car from his Grandma Gail and Papop. He knew just what to do with it. I was almost blissful on his birthday. We made it to a year. I made it to a year. We are done with the super baby stage. He is done nursing and on whole milk. Soon he will be walking and my back will start feeling better. Although I am very excited to move to the next stage of development, it is also bittersweet. I love nursing.

Our first Picnic- In February?

Well this is another late post. We had a beautiful stretch of weather a few weeks ago that I decided we had to have a picnic on the deck. Freckle Foot has been refusing to wear shoes outside even in February.

The kids were able to play in the sandbox for a while. Little Loaf really enjoyed playing with the sandbox for the first time. There was lots of sand in the bottom of my tub that night.

More Valentine's Activities

I found this tracing activity at Confessions of a Homeschooler. Freckle Foot loves her Preprinting with Mazes book so I thought I would see if she was interested in this tracing page. She prefers her maze book.

One of my friends came up and brought a car load of craft supplies that her neighbor was giving away.  I found these silk stuffed hearts. Freckle Foot and Little Loaf both enjoyed this activity. I just gave them this empty diaper wipes container. The had fun putting the hearts in and out. In fact I am still not sure where all the hearts are because the hid them all over the house.

Valentine's Day

We had a very nice Valentine's Day. Freckle Foot made Valentine's for all her favorite people of course. I received some beautiful tulips and the kids got a balloon to play with. In fact it's still floating around our house almost 3 weeks later.

I made a mailbox for Freckle Foot to practice sending Valentine's. It looks more like a kitchen oven than a mailbox. I cut down a diaper box then covered it with blue contact paper. Last year while I was still gleaning I got princess valentine's. Who knew a year ago that Freckle Foot would be so obsessed with Princess. She was thrilled with the Valentine's and I was surprised to find out she know all the names of the Disney Princess.

I made these bean bag hearts out of scrap fabric I had on hand. The hearts with the white background is fabric from my childhood that I stole from my mother ages ago. I made two of each so that we could work on matching patterns.

This isn't the greatest picture. You can see I made a line using masking tape on the floor and a heart out of blue painters tape. I wanted Freckle Foot to work on her throwing skills. She wasn't all that interested in it until the neighbor girls came over and then it was a fun game. It will be nice because I can use the hearts next year.