Summer 2012 Updates!! {Puffy Paint Tutorial}

Hi! I hope this post finds you well! I wanted to post a quick update on us.
{Click on any of the photos to enlarge them}
We have continued to do homeschool work this summer (mainly math and phonics) in preparation for officially starting our school year in a few weeks. I am so glad we never got totally out of the "school flow" so that it won't be such a shock when we delve back in 100%. Elle is about half way done with her first grade math work book and Em is starting to really get a hang of reading. She will turn 4 next week!

Here are some of our recent adventures and fun while learning!

Our family spent some time at the State Fair and had a wonderful time!

We all were shocked that the baby, Ce Ce 26 months, wanted to ride all of the "big girl" rides! None of us were prepared for that. She is the one that never even goes on the little pony ride at the grocery store, LOL. I guess she really is growing up!

Elle made a really cool obstacle course and all of the girls had a great time playing with that!

We have been doing lots of crafts this summer--tons of painting, collecting things on nature walks and observing beauty all around us. We made bird feeders out of rice cakes, peanut butter and bird seed and the girls hung them on the tree in our front yard. 

The birds really loved them-we need to make them again.

We also made Microwave Puffy Paint. 

We always love creating fun art using this technique!

You should try it! 

Microwave Puffy Paint Recipe

• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp salt
• food coloring

Add small amount of water to make a smooth paste.  

We like it pretty thick so it really puffs up well:).

Paint on pieces of cereal box cardboard and microwave for 20-30 seconds. 

 We L-O-V-E going to the library!!!!
We always check out 100 books and spend some great learning time down there.

We have strung popcorn for movie nights and such, but seeing this on Pinterest reminded me of making these cereal and pretzel bracelets. The girls had a ball making them and eating them! It kept them occupied in the mini-van for a long time!

We will be rounding out the summer with a kid's Cooking Class for the big girls, as well as Gymnastics Camp for Em (future Gabby Douglas maybe:) and a Church Day Camp for Elle! 

I pray your summer is going well and you are enjoying it!!

Blessings,

Aria:)

{Messy Mondays} Part 1

Our girls LOVE doing "Messy Mondays!" 

Every week, we come up with new and fun ways to have some Messy Fun!

Here are a few of our latest Messy Mondays!

Enjoy!!

~Top-Shaving Cream and Marbles Fun

~Middle left-sprinkler/water fun outside

~Middle right-Bath tub paint

~Bottom left-writing on the doors and windows with markers

~Bottom right-Homemade Play dough with spaghetti and wooden beads.

More fun to come!!!

What kinds of ways do your kids like to get messy?

Blessings,

Aria:)

{Summer Highlights} Part 1

Our summer has been fun, busy, and full of ups and downs!

It has been H-O-T here! We have tried to spend time outside when the weather has allowed. We always love being out in nature! 

Here are a few highlights of our summer thus far:

~By far, Ce Ce's favorite outdoor activity is water play! She could do that all day and all night, LOL.

~Our family traveled to Georgia to visit my mother and grandmother and other family. We had a great visit!

~We suffered through extreme summer thunderstorms and lost power our a four day stretch. We ended up going to a hotel and the girls LOVED it---me, not so much, LOL;) We did have a lot of fun and were able to re-set our priorities and God's grace abounded during this difficult time.

~One of our closest friends had a beautiful baby boy---we love snuggling with him!

~Our girls went to Vacation Bible School and had an amazing time learning about Jesus!

~We love dining al fresco----the girls enjoy eating breakfast on the back deck.

~It is not summer unless the girls run through the sprinkler!

~We took our girls to a local carnival fair and ate funnel cakes-it was so much fun!

~Playing at the park is also a favorite family activity!

~We enjoyed the fireworks from the back porch of a cousin, so the girls were in their jammies:)

~We take our girls downtown to a family friendly park that has a carousel---the girls LOVE it! {Too bad it is not free!}

~Elle has started working on Multiplication in Math---she LOVES it!!

~We are counting down to Em's 4th birthday!

~One of our Bible Memory Verses has been "The joy of the Lord is your strength!"

~Ce Ce loves working on transferring! 

~Elle and I have both started "Gratitude Journals." They have been so beneficial and we LOVE sharing our journals and what we are thankful for each day!!! {I recently read "1000 Gifts" by Ann Voskamp and it was life-changing!!}

~Em has been reading using Starfall and really, really enjoys it!

~I finally decided it was time to teach the girls to sort their own laundry--they are having a lot of fun doing this chore!

We have been studying poetry and the girls have been writing their own poems. I will have to share some of them later-they are really very creative!

Well, that is some of what we have been up to thus far.

How is your summer coming???  Anything fun going on with you??

Blessings,

Aria:)

Homeschool Highlights {May 2012}

We have been very busy in homeschool as we prepare to wind down our official school year!

 Em working on some rhyming flash cards while getting ready for ballet and tap dance class.

 Ce Ce still loves to work with homemade play dough!

 More outside play time.

 Em spotted some new caterpillars!

 Our future veterinarian!

 Em loves drawing with the window markers!

 Transferring carrots with tongs.

 Elle practicing her typing.

 Ce Ce putting plastic chips into the top slot of the yogurt container.

Great fine motor skill activity!

 We made apple and pear chips in our food dehydrator!

The girls LOVE these!

Em was impressed by the cross pattern that formed.

 Ce Ce really enjoys playing with the potato heads.

 My favorite recent photo of my family!!!!!!!!!!

This was on our wedding anniversary!

Seven wonderful years down-a lifetime to go!!!

 Elle at her Homeschool Gym class.

 Em is too young to participate in the gym class, but Elle's coach lets the girls play around with the equipment between classes. Em is definitely a natural born athlete!!! 

She has got muscle like Serena Williams!

 Elle really wanted to start learning how to prepare some more foods (including cooked food:).

She has been asking me for.ev.er! 

 She was so proud of her scrambled eggs with cheese---and they were very, very good!

 Em always is eager to assist with making breakfast.

 Paint time!!!

 The girls are creating a Nature Bag to use when we go on walks.

 One of the things they made for the bag is a painted egg carton.

They go on walks and try to find something that matches the painted color on the egg carton.

This has proven to be tons of fun for the girls!!

 I am so happy to see Ce Ce turning into a happy reader as well.

{They get it from their Mommy}!

 Em working on some domino math--she really loves math as well!

 Em is 3.5 years old and working on writing out equations!

Just one of the reasons I love homeschooling our children!!!!!

If they show an interest in something-we can RUN with it!

 Em practicing writing her numbers.

 Ce Ce had SOOOOOOOO much fun with cornstarch!

 No way I can be upset about the mess when she is buttering me up

with this cuteness:)!!

 One of the gigantic leaves Elle found on one of our recent nature walks.

 The girls had their Ballet and Tap Recital and both did amazingly well!!

 We took the girls to a local carnival/fair and had so, so much fun!!!

 We sliced up some fruit and had some fun making various shapes.

 Elle is signing "I Love You."

 Elle is working on 2 more file folder games from Mama's Learning Corner.

 Ce Ce had fun exploring with the split peas. I cleaned them up for a week! LOL.

 And, somehow, when I wasn't looking, Ce Ce turned 2!!!!!!!!

 Our homeschool group took a tour of a local bird sanctuary.

 During out outside play time, Ce Ce had fun pointing out all of the letters on the sign and Em tried her best to read the words. She sounded them out really well!

 Ce Ce got a new bubble machine for her birthday and we took it to Homeschool Gym to play with it with her friends!

 Em doing beginning sounds worksheet. She has always excelled in this area!

 The girls asked if they could have a slumber party, so I moved Em's bed into Elle's room for one night.

The girls did NOT get one ounce of sleep-but they had lots of fun and made happy childhood memories!

 This is the book Elle sleeps with in her bed and reads it every.single.day. 

It is a detailed medical book on pregnancy, childbirth and newborns.

If/When she becomes a physician, I am definitely putting this photo in her graduation slideshow!

 Em can count orally to 100 really, really well.

She is now working on number recognition past 20, so I designed a new game for her.

 I put animal crackers over some random numbers on our 100's chart and she had

to name the missing number before she could eat the animal cracker--she LOVED the game!

 Em helping me to make zucchini tots!

 Our girls eating lunch in the dining room.

They are just growing up so, so fast!!!

 We love going to the library!!!

 Elle takes her wheely cart and fills it with books to read. 

 Ce Ce, enjoying her favorite breakfast-organic yogurt parfait with fresh strawberries

and blueberries and granola.

 Ce Ce also loves oatmeal!

 Em really had fun making her math flower!

 Peak-a-boo!

 Elle's math flower!

 We also put our magnifying glasses in their nature bags. 

The girls really enjoy exploring nature.

 Em really enjoys working with our abacus.

She can add from 0-10 on it!

 Of course, having all girls, I indulge them in "Spa Days" from time to time. LOL.

 Elle 2nd math flower. This time I made it much harder-it was still easy for her, though:) LOL.

I had the abacus ready for her to use, but she didn't even need it!

 Fashion show time!

We really enjoy our homeschooling and infuse FUN every chance we get!!

Be a Blessing,

Aria:)