Crafting with the Kids: Leaf & Wax Paper Lanterns

The kids and I decided to try out a fun project recommended in my MOMS Club newsletter this month. We made lanterns using leaves and wax paper!

                                                                               

The best part of the project was collecting leaves. We went out front and filled our jack-o-lantern bucket! Both kids really had fun doing this step, and we ended up with a whole lot of leaves.

Once we were finished collecting our leaves, we went inside. Oliver helped me sort through them, and we chose the best ones. I set up an ironing board and an iron (careful with little ones around!). Next, I laid out a sheet of wax paper. I couldn't figure out which side was waxed and which side wasn't. I tried to scratch each side, but I was stumped. Perhaps both sides of my wax paper were coated because that's what it seemed like to me! Anyway, the leaves I had were pretty big, so rather than folding the paper down in half, I just used two sheets and sandwiched the leaves inside. I set a dish towel on top and ironed the whole thing for a few minutes.

After that, I used some double-sided tape to stick the sides together, creating a tube. The kids placed some flameless LED candles inside, and--voila!--we had our lanterns.

Bonus video of the kids:
                                                         

Nursing Home Trick-or-Treat

Colleen came with the kids and me to go trick-or-treating at a nearby nursing home with MOMS Club. The residents were happy to see all the kids in their costumes, and the kids were excited to trick-or-treat! Oliver went around the room with Colleen and trick-or-treated with everyone. He was a little ham and just had the best time. Joanna liked the candy and trick-or-treating, but she wasn't sure what to make of the residents at the nursing home. She started to cry a couple of times, so we ended up hanging back quite a bit.

After trick-or-treating, Colleen treated us to lunch and then took us to Gigi's Cupcakes as a special birthday surprise for Oliver. We each got a Halloween cupcake! Joanna got a red velvet mummy. See her hand in this next photo? That's her pulling the cupcake down. The moment after this photo was taken, it landed with a big splat on the floor.

I got a wedding cake skeleton. It was the perfect cupcake.

Grandma Colleen got a chocolate chip monster cupcake, and Oliver ended up with some sort of chocolate werewolf. The cupcakes look fantastic, and they tasted just as good as they look!

It was a day of sweets for the birthday boy. Earlier in the day, he got monkey pancakes for breakfast. Pancakes, trick-or-treating, cupcakes... and now tomorrow is Halloween! Well, I suppose it's OK to go overboard once a year, right?!

Moove Kids' Dance Party in Littleton

We joined MOMS Club for a little dance party at Moove in Littleton! It's a new play place for kids. There's a big dance floor, and they lead kids through dances like The Hokey Pokey and Limbo!

When we arrived, Oliver and Joanna bee-lined it straight for the balls. They rolled them around the dance floor and bounced on them. They loved it! Oliver told me the place was "so pretty" because of all the lights.

In the back, they have a dark room lit up with black lights. The kids get to draw on the walls and floors in chalk. I think the chalk is supposed to glow under the black light, but it didn't really work. The kids still loved the novelty of writing on walls, though.

This is Oliver refusing to dance "The Funky Chicken," but he agreed to bounce to the song.

And then there was limbo! Limbo was hilarious. Oliver and the little kids just ducked under the bar instead of bending. He really had the best time! When we got home, he asked me to set up a bar for him, so I tied a piece of string across a doorway for him to play and duck under.

There was also plenty of food, in addition to some for purchase at reasonable prices. The older kids also enjoyed playing with a Kinect. A good time was had by all!

Tea Party!

How cute of an idea is this? One of the moms in my MOMS Club decided to host a tea party for everybody. All the kids who came dressed up. I brought some Russian tea cookies, and another mom brought some homemade scones. The host brewed teas and iced them for the kids. It was hysterical! These little kids were dressed to the nines, sipping on iced tea, and eating little sweets on top of a plastic table cloth. Best little kid party ever!

Here is the recipe at allrecipes.com for the cookies.

Here are Oliver & Jo, all dressed up for the tea party!

Jo was so happy to finally get to eat the cookies!

The tea party! (Thanks to the other moms for some of these photos)

I took a few extra photos of Jo's adorable fall dress when we got back. I'm so glad we had an excuse for her to wear it!

We're going to stay busy all week! One of the moms in MOMS Club pointed out that today is "Talk Like a Pirate Day." She has a bunch of great ideas for the day, like walking the plank (a board on the ground), eating today's catch (Goldfish), and counting treasure (pennies!). We might try to do some of those things, but today is also Lunar Festival! My friend gave me some moon cakes that I saved especially for today. In parts of Asia where they use the Lunar Festival, today is sort of a fall celebration. My friend told me they eat moon cakes and go out to look at the moon and tell stories. We're going to do that and also look at stars (one of the items on my summer bucket list). 

Make a Balance Bike

Have you heard about balance bikes? I first heard about them last year. They're short, two-wheel bikes with no pedals. Kids push off on them and learn to balance on the bikes. By learning to balance first, kids learn how to ride bikes at a young age.

I really wanted to get one for Oliver. I checked them out at Timbuk Toys in Highlands Ranch. They were beautiful and perfect... and $100. Even on Craig's List, I only found them in the $50-$75 range. So, I wrote them off as just a good idea.

Until a few weeks ago, that is! One of the moms in MOMS Club, Erica, sent us a tip: make your own balance bike by removing the pedals, chain, and gears from a regular bike. It was such a simple idea. I couldn't help but think, "Duh, why didn't I think of that?"

Yesterday, I went to a church/preschool down in Littleton that was having a big consignment sale (actually, another mom in MOMS Club told us about it!). It's going on through Saturday, so if you're in the area, be sure to check it out. I went with one goal: to find a bike! I got there right at 9:30am when they opened and, after paying the $1 entrance fee, I bee-lined it for the bikes. Oliver was at work with Andrew for Take Your Child to Work Day, so it was just Jo and me. I spotted a short, green bike with no training wheels. It was priced at $5!

I bought the bike, and, as soon as Jo went down for her nap, I started scraping away at all the stickers and decals.

I wasn't strong enough to get the pedals off the bike. Actually, I wasn't even strong enough to loosen the bolt to lower the seat! Andrew got a little "honey do" list when he came home. He got to work on the bike, and I ran back to the sale to look for a bike helmet for Oliver. I had my ticket to get back into the sale for no extra charge, and I got the helmet for $2. Here's Oliver looking out the window at Andrew, who was working on severing the bike chain.

Here's our finished product! Not bad for $5, ey?

The verdict? It looks great. Oliver loves his new bike. He wants to keep trying to ride it. Unfortunately, he hasn't quite figured out the concept yet. He wants to lift up his feet and have us push him around. It's OK; he'll figure it out eventually. In the meantime, I'm just happy he's excited to do something active!

Disassembling the bike was a one-way street. After busting up the chain, we just didn't see the point in keeping the pedals. I figure, it'll work as a balance bike for Oliver this summer and next, and then it can be a balance bike for Joanna for a couple years. If I'm feel crafty, I can even spray paint it for her when the time comes.

Our "Just in Case Box" and the Tale of Jo's Public Blowout

I had a very poopy situation on my hands last week. If you don't have a weak stomach, you can laugh at my predicament and read my story below. Then, I'll share with you what I did to make sure I'm never in that situation unprepared again!

I took Oliver to his gymnastics class this morning (he's doing much better in it). I took Jo out into the hallway with a bag of toys that I'd brought, and we began playing with her blocks. Before too long, she started grunting, and I knew she was pooping. The class is only 45 minutes long, so I didn't have a bunch of stuff with me, just an emergency diaper in my purse. I waited a minute to make sure she was done, as there's nothing worse than changing a diaper only to have your kid finish pooping in the new one. 

After about a minute, I noticed things were smelly. I mean they really stinky. Jo bent forward to grab her toy car, and that's when I saw it: it was a blowout.

Poop had come up out of her diaper, over the top, and down the back of her jeans. She'd been kneeling, and it smeared all over the back of her legs and on her shoes. It was clearly up on her back, too. 

I tried to decide if I should take her home or not. There was 25 minutes left in class. The drive home is about 10 minutes. I decided it wasn't an option. I picked her up by the armpits, grabbed our stuff, and ran to the bathroom. There was no changing table! I ran next door to the family bathroom, which I knew didn't have a changing table since we use that one regularly. I know, what kind of family bathroom doesn't have a changing table, right? But at least it would give me some privacy! 

I stood Jo up and carefully lifted her shirt off of her. Miraculously, there was only a little bit of poop on the bottom of her shirt. I got her shoes off and set them on the sink, and then I peeled her jeans off and did the same. It seemed like the mess was mostly localized to the outside of her pants, so, thankfully, it didn't smear down her legs. Her socks managed to stay clean. I didn't have any wipes with me. I started to wipe her with those brown paper towels, but they only smeared the mess. So, I held her over the sink and washed her as she wailed in anger. Once she was thoroughly clean, wet, and mad, I set her down on the floor in just her socks. I went to go throw the diaper away but found there was no liner in the trashcan! I didn't want to have someone reach in and grab the mess, so I wrapped the diaper as best I could in a bunch of paper towels.

Then came time for damage control. First, I washed the small bit of poop off the shirt. I was lucky, and it came off easily. The shirt was only wet at the bottom, so I put it back on her. I washed her shoes and put those back on her, along with the fresh "emergency diaper." Then, I scrubbed and scrubbed at her jeans in the sink. They were soaking wet, but I stuck them at the bottom of the bag of toys I'd brought for Jo. Next came my own shirt. I had a disgusting poop streak down one sleeve. I couldn't exactly walk around topless, so I was stuck washing that in the sink, too, and then I had to put it back on! I rolled up the left sleeve as best I could. I then walked around the bathroom, cleaning up any poop spots on the bench and stuff. I used soap and paper towels to scrub the sink. I got the sink pretty clean and then washed my hands and Jo's hands. The whole bathroom stunk like poop. It was so embarrassing. I grabbed a few paper towels and walked out of the stinking bathroom. We walked along the hallway, looking for any poop spots to wipe up. I didn't see any, but that just might mean I missed some. 

Jo had to hang out in just her diaper and shirt. If there are any poop spots I missed anywhere, I'm sure they will know it's us! We're regulars, so most of the people recognize us there. If there's any poop, they're going to think, "Oh, it must be that kid who was hanging out in her diaper." Urg, I'm so embarrassed!

That's the story I shared with all the ladies in my MOMS Club. They were able to laugh at my story and assured me they've been there. They also gave me a recommendation that seems so obvious now: keep a spare outfit, diapers, and wipes in the car. As one mom put it, even potty trained kids can have accidents. It's better to be safe than sorry!

That same day, I put together an "emergency" box (which I've dubbed our "Just in Case Box," so it's not confused with, say, a first aid kit or something). In it, I put an outfit for each kid, two pairs of undies, two spare diapers, wipes, and plastic bags to bundle any soiled clothes and any icky diapers & wipes. I sealed it with a single piece of tape so it won't spill all over the car but will still be easy to open if and when I need it.

A Mom Tries to Paint

Andrew and I tried our hand at painting for one of our semi-weekly date nights in. This was actually back in August. It was fun! I picked up some acrylic paints at Michael's (totally not knowing what I was doing). Then, I printed off one of our pictures from Georgetown, Colorado, and he printed a photo of the Rockies near Aspen. We used brushes and paper plates and figured it out as we went along. 

This was the photo I used:

And here are our paintings. Mine (on the right) kind of looks like the photo, right?

We have those paintings displayed in our bathroom. Well, I was reminiscing about it because I just got back from a painting group. All of these painting places have been popping up in the Denver area--Canvas & Cocktails, Sipping and Painting, and Art on the Brix. Basically, you go, and an instructor gives you step-by-step instructions on how to complete your masterpiece.

My dad went to Canvas & Cocktails with his work place over the holidays. They painted Larimer Square. Ever since then, I've wanted to check one out. So, I went with some ladies from MOMS Club to Art on the Brix in Golden. I had a really great time with those ladies, and I got to create a new masterpiece.

It's my Impressionist painting. Seriously, it was a ball.

There's something to be said about taking the night off and making some art. I feel so inspired!

Pool & Piñata

Yesterday, my friend, Gina, threw a pool party for her daughter's 3rd birthday. She did a fun snow/pool contrast theme and even made her own snowman piñata! What kid wouldn't have a fun time at a pool party with a piñata filled with delicious treats? We had a blast! 

Here's the piñata Gina made: 

The birthday girl!

Piñata time! Here's the birthday girl taking a swing:

Oliver waited patiently in line.

When it was Oliver's turn to hit the piñata, he freaked out. He went back a few minutes later and kind of gave it a whack.

Here he is in his big moment!
                    

You'd think he would have been more successful since he'd had practice. Haha. One of the big kids finally busted the piñata open. Success!

Oliver was so cute. He grabbed a single Twix from the pile. I told him he could have more, so he picked one more Twix.

RIP, snowman piñata.

Then came time for fun in the pool. I'd never been to the Foothills pool before. It's fantastic! A large portion of the pool is a foot deep or less. The water's warm, and you walk right into the pool (there's no drop, just a gradual deepening).

It was like a splash park in the shallow part of the pool. All of the kids had a blast.