Recycled Catepillars

I cut the top off an egg carton, then cut the bottom in half lengthwise. The kids had paints, pipe cleaners and googly eyes. Add in a LOT of creativity... and you have two very hungry (adn cute!) catepillars!

It was very simple and it let the kids use their imaginations. A great opportunity to talk about bugs and the life-cycle of a catepillar.

One for the Birds

This week's theme: Explorers

Since spring began, #2 has been insistant upon making a birdhouse at Daddy Day Camp. Sounds great, but Daddy isn't exaclty a handyman and with 2 big boys and a toddler, that really isn't feasible.

So....




I picked up a couple of unfinished ones at the craft store. They painted them. I'll spray with a clear sealer, add hangers and let them pick a spot in the yard.

Our yard is loaded with birds! We're borrowing a birdwatching book form the library to help us Explore our yard for different birds (and bats! we've got a bat house too).

Back to Business

The boys really enjoyed their two weeks of Karate Camp, but Daddy was getting a bit burnt out trying to get everyone out of the house and to camp on time, so we are back to the business of Daddy Day Camp.

We noticed something interesting the last couple of weeks - well, actually, I didn't figure it out until last Thursday. Building up to then, we've noticed the kids fighting more with each other, constantly being negative, beligerent and complaining of boredom. One would think this attitude would have improved with the addition of camp.

It dawned on me Thursday night that we'v ebeen all business inhtis house. Get dressed. eat your breakfast. go to camp. The conversations between parent and chid have been all business. No wonder why we were all so cranky!

Since Friday, we've made a deliberate effort to talk with them and do things with them. Not that we have given control over to them, but we are reminding them that we aren't Ogres and we can be fun too! the change in their behavior was immediate!

off the hook...

I initially planned on Math games/activities for next week. I came up with nothing... I was "saved by the bell" just now. The owner of the Martial Arts school decided to add another week to Karate Camp! They've had a great week, so they are looking forward to another!

As for the math, I am working it into the daily activities:

• asking them to cut and or divide things
• count the towels I am folding
• tell the time
• #2 helped count the change at the grocery store
• #1 got to count my stitches as the doctor took them out
• measuring ingredients while we cook

I am also going to try to work math into the rest of the Daddy Day camp activities.

Karate Camp!

This week, the b0ys will spend their mornings with their karate instructors. They will be doing plenty of karate, but they will also play other games/sports and work on sportsmanship. Each participant will get a trophy at the end of the week. I'll have to make room on the mantle next to their other 6 trophies from the tournament! I hear it was a rough morning getting them going, but I know they'll LOVE it!

It gives me a break to plan for next week too. Math week doesnt' sound too exciting, but I'm hoping they do'nt notice that they are learning math... maybe we'll start with ractios? They both get the concept of multiplication, so it may be a good time to introduce division (and that is all that fractions are).

Fossils

I used this recipe for "Coffee Ground Fossils" (great site - annoying pop-up). I mixed the dough the night before and made individual balls, wrapped them in plastic wrap and squashed them flat. When I mixed the dough, I found it to be more batter-like than desirable, so I added another 1/2c. salt and 1c. flour. It was still soft and sticky the next day. they left it out for a few hours to stiffen up and managed some fossils. I had to move them off of the kitchen table for dinner, and they lost some definition... so I'm not sure I'm 100% thrilled with the recipe. I think I may have gone wrong with the coffee grounds. we are NOT coffee drinkers, so my ILs put some in a Ziploc for us. They were still damp, but not dripping when I added them. perhaps they should have been dry.. the boys enjoyed this, so it may be worth a do-over. I also had to let them dry for 3 days and they still aren't totally dry. Perhaps "baking" in the sun would have helped.... or better yet... in the oven.

*This is a rare "Thomas the Tank Engine" fossil made by #1 who is having a hard time handing the trains over to #3...

Make Your Own: Playdough

Don't want to buy playdough? Afraid that your child will eat it? Want another activity you can do together? Make your own! It is easier than you might think and you probably already have all of the ingredients in your pantry! It is completely safe and non-toxic. I'm sure it will taste pretty gross, but it is non-toxic!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour


• 3 cups water


• 1 cup salt


• 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil


• 2 Tablespoon cream of tartar


• food coloring or unsweetened powdered drink mix


• glitter (optional - omit if you think it may get eaten)

Make the Dough:

Mix all of the ingredients together in a metal bowl or saucepan and stir over low heat. As the dough begins to thicken, it will pull away from the sides and clump in the center. When it is no longer sticky, remove the pan from heat and allow the dough to cool enough to handle.

Turn the dough out onto a clean counter or silicone pastry mat, and knead until it becomes smooth. Divide the dough into balls for coloring. Poke a hole in the center of the ball, and drop some food coloring and glitter in. Fold the dough over, working the color and glitter through the ball of dough (you might want to wear plastic gloves for this part). Start with a small amount of color and add more until you get the shade you want.

Tips:

• Concentrated paste dyes used in cake decorating will give you nice deep, vibrant colors. I used Wilton dyes for the dough shown.


• Unsweetened powdered drink mix will make your dough scented as well! you may need to go heavy on the mix to get rich color.

Field Trip #2

Yesterday's project is still drying, so more on that tomorrow when I can give a full review.

Today is another trip to Grandma's. Daddy and Papa are going fishing, so the boys are spending the day running in the sprinkler in my In-Laws yard. Hopefully, the thunderstorms will hold off...

Dyno-mite!

To kick off Paleontology week, the boys decorated these wooden dinosaurs. the kit included 8 wooden Dino's, stands, markers and paints for about $8 (I got it on sale for $4). We've been reading a bit about dinosaurs the last few weeks. #2 and I just finished Dinosaurs Before Dark from the Magic Tree House series. Meanwhile, I was reading Andrew Lost With the Dionosaurs from the Andrew Lost series with #1. they enjoyed getting hands on witht the critters that they have been reading about.

Firecracker!!!

To help celebrate the 4th, the boys made their very own fireworks! I took a toilet paper tube, filled it with glitter stars and taped both ends. Half of a pipe cleaner makes a great fuse! then, they got to decorate them. On the 4th, they cracked them open (outside!) like mini-pinatas!

My apologies on the lack of photos. I was in an accident last week and I am still playing catch-up.

Happy Birthday America!

We moved play dough day to Thrusday due to the Holiday, but tune in Monday for my dough recipe!

Until then, have a safe and happy 4th!

Stars & Stripes

As we continue on our "Stars &Stripes" week, the boys made their version of Old Glory. I gave them each red, white and blue construction paper, scissors and glue sticks. They have crayons and markers on hand and the glitter glue was left to Daddy's discretion. You can also use stickers or stamps for the stars or paint the stripes.

Field Trip

Yesterday was the first "field trip" of the summer. A trip to my In-law's house. Nothing too exciting, but it is a change of scenerey and the driveway is a perfect spot for Daddy to teach #1 & #2 how to skateboard. I did pack a simple necklace kit for #1 & #2 to do today as well. Quick, easy and $1 at joann's. It fit this week's theme: Stars & Stripes!