A "Real" Mom

It's a rainy day here and I had a flashback to the first time I felt like a "real" mom. We were four months into the year 2005, my first born was only 4 1/2 months old, and we were stuck in Los Angeles traffic.  I could not reach her to comfort her, and the more I giggled her car seat the more she cried. I tried the pacifier with no luck and I remember wishing I could crawl into the back seat and nurse, but there was nowhere to pull over.  I felt helpless.  I turned on some music and it only made things worse, but as I talked to my little baby she started to listen, and then I started to sing. I sang every song I knew as a new mommy, that only took about five minutes.  I stopped, there was no crying, no tears, nothing, I was alarmed, then I turned around to find my precious child fast asleep. This was the first time I felt like a REAL Mom.

That little baby is now five years old. She can now serenade the entire family with the songs I sang to her as a baby. Life is a miracle and love is a very precious thing.

Do you remember the first time you felt like a "real" mom?

A Mommy Book Review

I have a dear friend, Elizabeth, who is an incredible writer and I am so happy to be able to review her new book.  It's called The Tender Years, by Geri Laing and Elizabeth Laing Thompson. This mother-daughter duo writes from the heart with short devotionals, poetry, and helpful advice for preschool parents.

"This book is every preschool moms perfect companion. Like diapers and baby wipes, the Tender Years is a must have to help us get through those everyday "tender" moments of motherhood."
-sippycupcentralmom.blogspot.com

You can purchase her book on Amazon...even if she wasn't my friend, it's still a really great read for this time in my life!

Stained Glass Art Project

Olive made this lovely stained glass art project.

She used cardboard, aluminum foil, tissue paper, and black paper.

Here's my first tutorial:

1. Cut a circle out of cardboard.

2. Cover with foil and paint with watered down glue.

3. Tear tissue paper into pieces and paste.

4. Make a snowflake out of black paper and glue onto top of tissue paper circle.

 

Now you have a lovely piece of art to share with you family and friends!

This post is linked with: Little Materpieces

FIAR- Amber on the Mountain

Olive had a great time in her Five in a Row Co-op, thanks to Ms. M and her great ideas with the story Amber on the Mountain, by Robert Duncan. Olive loves the mountains so picturing herself as a girl living there was easy. We talked about how people lived with out cars and depended on horses, mountains we have hiked, and how friendships are important.

"Egg"cellent Science

Now for our cool "egg"cellent science experiment:

What will a raw egg do in fresh water?

What will a raw egg do in salted water?

Notice that the egg will float in the saltwater but sinks in the ordinary tap water. The saltwater is denser than the regular water, meaning the egg is lighter than the saltwater. Density is the relationship between weight and size.

Marvelous Monday Unplugged-Floating Liquids

I had a wonderful birthday weekend.  My Buzz Lightyear took me camping and cooked on the open fire like a cowboy, and we got our feet freezing cold in the sand...it was perfect. Then I arrived home to a delicious birthday cake and a tidy house, thanks to the girls and Grammy. 33 is looking like a good year!

Now for our fun experiment:  Even if your kids don't understand density yet they will still enjoy this project. You can explain that the heavier liquids are closer to the bottom and that the lighter liquids float closer to the top.

What we used from top to bottom:     

oil
(yes, I put a sock around my oil to prevent marks on my cabinets)

colored water

dish soap

honey

molasses

Add each liquid slowly and slide them down the side of a clear glass.



An easier way to see this is to just use oil and colored water. The girls enjoyed stirring the liquids up and watching them separate.

The best present

Olive loves to craft and received this adorable paint your own jewelery box for her birthday.  She has a nice assortment of princess jewels that she is always looking to hide from her little sister and I think this box may do the trick. After the box dried she added bright pink feathers to make it extra fancy.

Froggy snacks

We made these cute froggy snacks to hand out to Olive's choir friends. Take any sandwich cookie, stick on pretzel legs, and jelly bean eyes with peanut butter, and enjoy!

 

Nature Walk

The weather has been lovely this week so we took a walk around our neighborhood and saw lots of interesting things. 1 big alligator that we call Slater the gator, 10 turtles sunning, 6 ibis white birds, and take a guess what that ball of green is in the tree....?

Hint: kiss kiss....

Ok, It's mistletoe- it grows in clumps on trees around here. It's easy to spot in big round green balls in winter when the trees don't have any leaves.

I love the beach in January

The cold breeze on your face, freezing water chilling your toes, and just the right amount of sun to warm up the tip of your nose....ahh, just perfect. The girls and I spent a lovely hour eating lunch and running around at the beach. Olive and Jem started making a little sand house so we could live at the beach forever.

A sisterly moment like this is hard to capture, especially when Jem says, "you make me feel so happy," because Olive told her that she was the best little sister in the whole wide world.

It's a date!

Dates with your children are just as important as dates with you spouse. I was lucky enough to have some alone time with Jem today. We enjoyed playing together at the local children's museum. It was nice to observe her playing with out the aid of Olive, especially when creating art. We showcased Jem's creations on the living room table for daddy to see when he came home from work.

 

Marvelous Monday Unplugged

This is my snow angel. We don't have snow right now, but were treated to about 7 inches the weekend before Christmas on a visit to North Carolina. There is nothing like snow to capture the essence of childhood. I heart snow....

Birthday Girl

The cake turned out cute and I wanted to share some photos. I always think that I'll just go out and buy a cake, but then the guilt hits and I end of making one. This year Olive wanted me to make one that looks like a castle, chocolate with princess icing.  Note to self:  it doesn't matter what it looks like, it just matters that mom made a cool cake.

Birthday girl is happy, not only did she have a great party, but Grammy and Pop-Pop surprised her with a trip to Disney.  Just the three of them, lucky girl!

FYI...my girls will where costumes each and every day. We went through a period where it was a struggle to have them put on their "real" clothes, but my Buzz Lightyear reminds me that this stage will pass and to just enjoy it.

She's turning 5-Scavenger Hunt Clues

There is a ton of excitement around her this week as Olive is getting ready to celebrate her 5th birthday! I just have to say it, "I can't believe she's turning 5!"  I am so proud of her...Olive is bright, witty, artistic, and a fabulous big sister.

This year Olive wanted to have a princess party (again), so we changed it up a bit with a princess scavenger hunt theme. These are my ideas, please let me know if you think of anything else.

--Princess Scavenger Hunt clues:
Red and shiny, delicious to eat,
I made Snow White, fall asleep.

Cinderella danced at the ball with fancy shoes,
go to where Olive keeps hers and find your next clue.

Sharp and tiny I may be,
they tried to keep Sleeping Beauty away from me.

Ariel thinks having legs is grand,
go help her find a place to get wet, with out any sand.

Belle loves to read good books and is smart as can be,
now go find your next clue on page 103.

Mulan is a warrior and fights for her land,
where can you find clothes that make you look like a man.

Tinker Bell flies as fast as can be,
just look for her magical dust on me.

After they have discovered all the clues, the fairy dust will lead them to a treasure chest with their prize- tiaras for the girls, and pirate swords for the boys.

FIAR- A New Coat for Anna

Olive had a great time rowing the book, A New Coat for Anna, at her Five In A Row Co-op this week. The girls enjoyed playing a bartering game, dying cloth with strawberries and carrots, learning to weave, and making hand print sheep with cotton. The girls in the group are between the ages of 5-6, but this would also be a great book to revisit when they get older.

Whiplash Wednesday, pomegranates

I can't tell you how much I love pomegranates! It's not something I grew-up with, it's one of those things you discover when you move away from home, like to the other side of the country. These tiny bitter-sweet seeds pack a healthy, powerful punch.

For those of you who don't know...this fruit grows on a VERY spiny bush. When we lived in California our neighbors planted them under their windows for extra protection.

The one thing I can't stand about this fruit are the stained fingers, counter tops, and shirts it marks with tiny red droplets.

My whiplash moment came when I discovered an easier way to love these round, ruby globes.
1. cut in half
2. soak in a big bowl of water
3. flip the seeds out
4. drain and enjoy

Now go ahead and whip it good!

Waddle like a Penquin

Olive and Jem enjoyed making these adorable paper penquins. They were easy to make! The idea came from www.kidssoup.com

And keeping with our theme, tonight we are having fish for dinner...the kind penquins like to eat.

Pink and Green Mama: How To Build An Igloo....with Felt!

Pink and Green Mama: How To Build An Igloo....with Felt!

Arctic is for polar bears, Antarctica is for penquins

It's a major freeze around here this week, like much of the South. The thermometer reads 22 degrees this morning. We have lived here a year now and I think my blood has run thin. Sometimes the cold weather really gets my brain working, it's a good thing, so we started a really cute unit on the "Arctic is for polar bears and Antarctica is for penquins."

I started by saying polar bears live up there (pointing up) and penquins live down there (pointing down.) O says, "you mean they live way under the ground." How confusing can one mom be? Then I got out our world map rug and they got it. They enjoyed putting their arctic animals where they belonged, did some fun goldfish math, while J played with some play foam like it was snow.

Not bad for a cold morning.

Sippy Cup Central

I am starting a new journey...come follow me, the train is just leaving the station.