The Letter B and a Marble race

Today we began our journey with the letter B. I was very impressed that both boys picked it up pretty fast. We did Bee B's. I cut out the letter B then let them paint them yellow. Then we put stripes, wings and antenna on them.

 I think they turned out pretty great!

 I set up this marble race while they were doing their B's. You take a pool noodle and cut it in half. Then set up an old shoe box to catch the marbles. They had a blast racing their marbles and can't wait to have another race.

 It was definitely a cheap craft, $1 for the noodle and $1 for the marbles at walmart, but I think it has been their favorite so far!

Big Boy Bed and Birthday

I can't believe my baby is old enough to be in a big boy bed. I know that probably sounds strange considering most parents put their children in a big bed when they are much much younger than Zac, but I waited until Mack was almost 3 to move him and it worked out perfectly for everyone. Every mother will tell you in the blink of an eye your baby will go from almost crawling to being almost 3 and being SO independent. I had to push myself to even put it together then I almost backed out and put him in his crib anyway. The only thing that made me change my mind was the look of pure excitement on my little boys face. He was so proud of his big bed just like bubba's that I knew it was time for him to grow up and me to let go of the "baby bed". So the last baby item is now destined for storage.

Can you see the excitement in his eyes! As long as he has duck he's ready to sleep.

 He loves his bedding!

 Just thought I'd throw in a picture of Mack. Man I have 2 great kids!

 This is how I found him the next morning though. The only thing I can figure out is that he fell out of bed during the night and found the softest thing he could lay his head on. Notice he didn't loose duck though.

 Friday was also Colton's birthday and of course the boys had to help daddy open his present.

 We went to Georgia Blue and had a wonderful time!

 They had live music and Mack helped them drum the whole time they were playing!

 Zac's new go-to pose when he's bored. Love it!

 We also made daddy a card. (not sure why it's sideways)



Aliens and Foamerators with Friends

Yesterday we made Alien A's. I traced an A on the inside of a cereal box and let the boys finger paint. Then I cut it out, added an antenna, had them glue on the eyes and mouth, and finally glue to the orange paper.

I think they turned out so well. This was our last A project and we'll be starting on B next week. Oh the possibilities B brings!

Today we had a play date with Mack's BFF and made foamerators. I have to say they were a little hard for the 4 year olds and Zac checked out after a few tries but when Shelley and I did it for them they loved it. We had so much fun today and can't wait until next time!

Sun Catcher Science Project

I've been trying to find good ideas for science projects that a 2 and a 4 year old  can enjoy and I found this cool idea.

You take 4 cups of boiling water and mix in 12 tablespoons of Borax. I had never heard of this stuff but you find it in the washing detergent isle.

I let the boys wrap a pipe cleaner around their finger for the design, but the possibilities are endless when it comes to designs.

Then suspend the pipe cleaner in the borax solution (Make sure the pipe cleaner isn't touching the bottom or sides). Then let it sit there for about 24 hours.

This is what you end up with. Some people use these for ornaments for their Christmas tree but since it's August we decided to use them for sun catchers. I think they turned out great and the boys had so much fun making them.



Tractor pictures

I took some pictures of the boys this past weekend on PawPaw's tractor and I think they turned out pretty cute. My plan is to use one of Zac for his construction themed birthday invitation. I know his birthday isn't until November but you can never start planning to early.

Alligators and Apple Trees

We made alligators and apple trees to continue with our letter A week. I cut out the letters and let them color them with green markers and colored pencils. Then we glued the A to another piece of paper and added teeth and eyes.

Look at my proud boys with their alligator A's!

Then we made apple trees. I painted their hands and forearms to make the trunk and branches. We took a bath poof to make the green leaves and made the apples with their finger tip. They Loved it!

The Letter A

Today we worked with the letter A. First they glued the letter A on paper, then made fingerprint ants. They had so much fun and I think they're finally learning to love "school" time.

We are also practicing our cutting skills. So today we cut out willies whiskers.

These are all of the workbooks we've started. Some are better than others but the Cars themed books are by far the favorite for the boys.

We're working on our coloring skills as well. It's getting better but we have a long way to go. Listening to their kid songs CD while they color has really motivated them to sit a little longer. Oh and I'm pretty sure Zac is going to be a lefty. Which when you think about it explains a lot about his personality.



paint n bites

  I have been doing a ton of research on different craft ideas for the boys to do at home since we've decided to skip pre-school. I have to say I am so excited about what I'm going to do with them this year. I've found some really wonderful web sites that have different craft ideas to go along with the letter/number that your learning about as well as just fun stuff to do. My boys are a hard sell on sitting down and producing art, but my latest find had even my toughest critic having fun. Crayola has this awesome watercolor set that is supposed to be completely mess free, so I decided to test their theory. It passed with flying colors. The boys had a blast sticking the "brushes" into the "paint"!

I know his face says I'm not having fun, but what he's really thinking is mom get that camera away from me. I'm too busy to smile.

 Mack on the other hand doesn't miss an opportunity to smile for the camera, but really he knows I won't leave him alone until I get the picture I want.

Mack putting together the new alphabet puzzle. I'm trying to make learning fun. Lets hope I don't fail miserably.

Zac LOVES puzzles!

We also made s'more bites this afternoon for dessert. They tasted wonderful!

2nd trip to Batson

We made our second trip to Blair E Batson hospital today. Our first trip being when Zac was 6 weeks old and hospitalized with RSV. Today was our second and hopefully last trip and entailed removing the adenoids. He did really well though.

Watching TV in the waiting room.

Gowned up and ready to go in his pre-op room.

Watching a little TV with daddy and his best buddy duck.

After the "happy" medicine!

After the surgery the smile disappeared and the screaming commenced, but it didn't last long. Little man has been sleeping it off ever since.

Hopefully this will close this chapter in Zac's life and he'll have a long healthy future!