Uninvited Guest

We are homebodies, as I've already said.  But recently, Bug and I have been taking frequent trips to Lowe's.  We like Lowe's.  A lot.

So there we were, in the garden section marveling at all of the glorious colors.  Like this:

And this . . .

And even this . . .

Bug even got into the spirit of things, touching blooms and running up and down the aisles.

We were having a glorious time.  That is, until the "Buzzy Bee" showed up.  Now, the bee was completely oblivious to our existence, and I would have taken a picture of said bee.  Promise I would.  But, at that moment, Bug took off down the aisle like his pants were on fire, screaming like a banshee, "Aaaagh!  The buzzy bee!  The buzzy bee!"  So instead, I took this picture:

Needless to say, our stroll through the garden department came to an abrupt end, as Bug demanded that we go inside immediately.  Nothing I did could calm him, but once he saw the porch swing, he climbed up and regrouped, still wary of any other "buzzy bees" that might be lurking nearby.

Finally, we bought a birdseed bell and called it a day.  Ahh, so much for stopping to smell the roses!

Hugs 'n love

Happy Birthday Bigger Boy

The cake has been cut.

The gifts have been opened.

"Happy Birthday" has been sung.

Here's to four incredible years, Doodlebug.

Happy Birthday!

Hugs 'n love

Stolen Moments

Bug likes to take my phone and explore the world, snapping pictures along the way.  I often find an abundance of shots of the floor, his foot, sofa cushions, etc.  But every now and then, he'll take a pretty good picture.  This one of Juice napping was especially sweet.

Hugs 'n love

A (Compass) Rose by Any Other Name . . .

For us to be self-proclaimed homebodies, we sure are on the go a lot.  The car is one of our favorite classrooms.  As a matter of fact, Bug learned his left from his right by turning corners and waiting at stoplights, guessing which way to go.

Our new car-focus is directions: North, South, East, and West.  The car has a handy-dandy compass in the rearview mirror, so now, as we're tooling along, I'll ask Bug, "What direction are we going?" 

So, then I got the bright idea to make a compass rose.

When I shared my idea with Angelgirl, her response was, "A what?"

"A compass rose.  You know, the star-looking thing on a map that points North, South, East, and West."

"Oh, a compass."

"Right."

"So why not just say compass?"

"Because it's a compass rose.  Google it."

"No."

"Go ahead, look it up."

"No."

"Fine, well, we're going to make a compass rose."

"Mom, just say compass."

"Whatever."

So here it is, folks!  A step by step view of the making of our compass (rose).

The materials:

Paint, scissors, a single hole punch, yarn, sentence strips (or large index cards), 2 - chenille stems (We called them pipe cleaners in the '70's), a styrofoam ball (about tennis ball size), craft glue, foam stickers, cardstock, a pen (I wound up using a gel pen).


Step 1 - Cut the styrofoam ball in half, with a knife, and paint.

Step 2- 4 - Once the half-ball dries, trace a circle around it on the cardstock, cut it out, and glue it to the styrofoam to give it backing.

Step 5 - 6 - Fold the chenille stems in half and cut in half.  Stick one piece in all four sides of the ball.  Punch a single hole at the top and bottom of the cardstock circle.

Step 7 - Curl the ends of the chenille stems to give a wider base, and stick the foam stickers on each end.  Be sure to use a different color for each direction.

Step 8 - 9 - Thread a piece of yarn through the top hole of the cardstock and secure.  Then cut the sentence strips and label with each direction.  Be sure to place a corresponding foam sticker on each one to serve as a reference for the main compass.  Also, place the directional designation on the stickers, both on the cards and on the actual compass.

Step 10 - Punch a hole at the top and bottom of the direction cards.  Then, thread the yarn through the bottom hole in the cardstock through each card.  I put a knot at the bottom with another sticker for added security.  Voila!  A compass (rose)!

What neat things are you crafting?

Hugs 'n love

Bug's Book Corner - We're Going on a Bear Hunt

Who knew looking for bears could be so exciting?  Although the back cover says this is a classic, we just discovered this book about a year or so ago.  It follows a family as they traipse through all kinds of terrain looking for a bear.

This book is fun.  Like, really fun.  I've seen different versions in preschool resources, but we do like this one the best.  The prose is lyrical, and it's a good one for creative movement as well.  I know when Bug pulls this from his book box, we're in for at least 45 minutes of swishing, sloshing, squelching, and swooshing.  Don't let the size fool you.  This one packs tons of creative posibilities!


Title: We're Going on a Bear Hunt
Author: Michael Rosen
Illustrations (?): Helen Oxenbury  

Excerpt:

We're going on a bear hunt.
We're going to catch a big one.
What a beautiful day!
We're not scared.

Oh-oh! Grass!
Long, wavy grass.
We can't go over it.
We can't go under it.
Oh, no!
We've got to go through it!

Swishy-swashy!
Swishly-swashy!
Swishy-swashy!

Areas for Exploration:

Language Arts - Prepositions, onomatopoeia (Words that sound like what they say), adjectives, rhythm/cadence, sequencing.

Geography - Discuss geographical elements like grasslands, rivers, woodlands, plains, northern areas prone to snow, wetlands, caves, maps, climate.

Creative Movement - Act out each leg of the journey, rhythm/cadence (Our favorite :-).

Animals-  Bears (different types) and their habitats as well as their behavior.

Enjoy!

Hugs 'n love

Bravery, or, Your Mama's a Punk

First, let me say, this sucker is tall.

That's Bug, sizing up the task at hand.

Now, I like to think of myself as a pretty daring individual.  My motto has always been,
"I'll try something once as long as it won't get me killed or arrested."  I don't think an arrest was imminent, but falling off this slide and breaking my neck was a real possibility, soo . . .

I told Bug he could go down the smaller slide (Don't judge.  Those who can, slide.  Those who are chicken, put their three year-old on the slide).   But then, Cousin Kita had the bright idea to go down the "Big Slide."

I was terrified.

Bug . . . was not.

"Okay, he can go as long as you go with him."

*Note: Bug's mama did not volunteer to scale Everest with him.

So, Kita 'N Bug scaled the harrowing heights, the epitome of bravery and grace.

Their descent . . . mmm, not so much.

From that point on, Bug was definitely a bigger boy, climbing the Matterhorn like it was nothing.

*Note: His mama stayed on the ground.

Ahhh, the fearlessness of youth!

Hugs 'n love