Back to School Read Alouds

This week's prize picnic topic is storytelling. I am not a great make up your own story person, but my family loves read alouds. With my big boy starting preschool next week (!!!) we have been dedicating reading time to some great "get ready for school" books. Here are some of my favorites.


The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn (be in the right state of emotion for this one, I almost always cry...)


Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes


Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes


Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes
(can you tell I really love Keven Henkes books?)


Froggy Goes to School by Jonathan London

David Goes to School by David Shannon


Margaret and H.A. Rey's Curious George's First Day of School


If You Take A Mouse to School by Laura Numeroff


Hooway for Wodney Wat by Helen Lester


Leo the Late Bloomer by Robert Kraus


Lastly, we have been LOVING the Junie B. Jones series by Barbara Park. We are currently reading number three in the series. I only read a few chapters a day, so it's not overwhelming. Then, before we read the next day, we review what was going on before. Even though Junie B. is a bit naughty, it has actually been a springboard into some great discussions about what we should do to behave.

Reading aloud is a great way to bond with your children. It encourages them to talk about their own feelings and emotions. It shows your children that you love reading and encourages them to read on their own. Little ones can read favorite stories by turning the pages and retelling the story in their own words. Those starting to read can follow along and read a special word with you (for example, have them read all of the "my's" in the book), or stop an sound out one or two words along the way. Chapter books are a great tool for encouraging sharper listening skills and promoting imagination as they have to see the pictures in their minds. Happy reading! Hop over to ABC's and 123's for more storytelling ideas.

Hop, Skip and Jump Picnic Post

Today's picnic post is about getting out and being active. Getting OUT... AND being active...


It's summer here in the lovely state of Arizona. Summer here means it needs to be at least 100 degrees as the LOW temperature in the evening or early morning. It is "blazing-burn-your-fingers-on-the-steering-wheel, avoid-the-outdoors-as-much-as-possible" hot here.

The only real physical activity we do at this time of year involves either being in a pool, being inside or running really fast to get inside so you don't fry.

Seriously, we do really love the community pool here and try to use it frequently. Swimming is great exercise. I actually have been participating in a weekly water aerobics class this summer. I had no idea you could get such a great workout in a pool... My kids beg to go too, but it's mommy time, no kids.

When we were in a better economic situation, we enrolled in swimming lessons during the beginning of the summer. Not this year. Oh well.

I go walking at night with a friend for about 30 minutes, three to four times a week to get some exercise in. (Well, we try...) Even though we go at 9 pm, it is still pretty toasty outside, but bearable with the sun down at least.

I try and cover my eyes as my children jump on the furniture and run in circles around the house to work out the energy. Sometimes I even encourage it by turning on some fun music (shh... don't tell Mom!). One can only do so much with no yard...

We "dance along" to So You Think You Can Dance every Wednesday and Thursday. That counts as exercise, right?

When it's not so terribly hot (think below 115...) we use our Zoo membership. The fabulous thing about the Phoenix Zoo is that they have two water areas for the kids, so you can get wet and walk around and not be so terribly hot the whole day.

We dash from the parking lot to the air-conditioned grocery store when we have to restock the fridge. We also have our daily walk to the mailbox. Sometimes we wander around the mall or the library just to get out of the house. All of these activities necessitate an Otter Pop afterwards.

I am a little jealous of everyone who lives in a part of the world where summer is a magical, outdoor paradise. I may be roasting now, but our winters are fabulous...

Honestly, being active is really NOT my area of expertise. Really, I'd rather just read a book than work out, but I'm trying because I know it's important for me and my family. Head on over to ABC's and 123's for some real advice on hopping, skipping and jumping...

Bracelet Refashion

Apparently, this little technique is a big thing because I have found tutorials on two blogs that I frequent, so I figured I'd give it a try.

I have several beaded bracelets that have been pulled apart by my boys and way too much ribbon for a mom with two boys. So, I took one old bracelet's worth of beads and a length of ribbon I had on hand and transformed it into a new bracelet, using this tutorial as a guide.

Not bad for a first try. There are two things I would change from the tutorial if I attempt this again. One, I would make the ribbon longer so that I could tie it in a bigger bow. Two, I would not sew the ribbon together first, so that the ends would be just the wide ribbon.

One thing I did differently from the tutorial. I folded the ends in and slip stitched it closed (I didn't have any fray-check) and I think it finished it nicely. There's nothing like a new piece of jewelry that doesn't cost a penny! How do you refashion on the cheap?

Picnic Post, Organization

I love organizing, so I don't even know where to begin on this post. I have seen so many wonderful posts on this topic, so I'm feeling a bit intimidated posting any of my not-so-brilliant ideas on this subject. I just like having a place for everything. Here are a few ways I organize the stuff that my boys use on a daily basis:

Books:


I have a lot of books... I had my books sorted by theme (Valentine's Day, transportation, etc.) while teaching and it worked for me there, so I just kept the system going at home. I divide my themes with a manilla file folder half that I wrote the theme on running down the side. Then I file all the books in that theme behind the divider. I rotate my books by season or theme we're studying, pulling only those books out and putting them in a basket for my kids to pull from. This makes it easy to keep my books in order and helps me read a variety of books to my kids, so we don't get stuck reading cars books over and over, and nothing else.


When we go to the library, I also make sure that library books stay in our library tote so they don't get mixed up in our personal books.

I also have a whole shelf of board books in no particular order for my toddler to go through. This way, he has his own books that don't need to be "organized" and he stays out of the more destructible paperbacks (well, for the most part...).

Toys:


I have two words for organizing toys- sweater tubs. I love my labeled sweater tubs. They are just the right size to hold a "collection" of toys, yet manageable enough for my kids to pack, lift, stack, and put away by themselves. I put the word and a picture on the label so anyone who was picking up toys (read "friends playing over" here) will know exactly where to put them.

Art supplies:


I keep a little pencil box (with scissors, glue stick, crayons and pencils), coloring books and activity pages, watercolors with a water cup (a plastic fruit cup container), and stickers in a portable handled tub, so when my kids want to do an art project, everything is in one place.

I think the real key to effective organizing is to just do what makes sense for your family. It shouldn't be too complicated, and it should be simple enough that your even your toddler can help clean up. Then, keep at it!

If you are looking for more great organization ideas, head on over to ABC's and 123's for more inspiration!

Sunday Sweets

(Image from Family Circle magazine)

I have been on a recent recipe quest at my house. I'm earnestly trying to get out of my food rut and setting out to try new things. I have an especially soft spot for all things dessert. I think this is an inherited affinity: my mom's family, especially her dad and her Grandma Smith, had a major sweet tooth (this doesn't bode well with the diabetes that also runs in the family...).

Back to the story. I found a lovely, lemony cake recipe in Family Circle. It looked so wonderful and light, so I decided to try it out.

Andrew helped mix and measure. We had fun baking together. It came out of the oven smelling wonderful. Then I made the frosting. With lemon juice and butter and powdered sugar, we created a heavenly, melt-in-your-mouth topping. The recipe said to wait until the cakes were cooled to mix the frosting...

Patience isn't one of my strong suits. Believe me, I'm working on it.

We had to transport the warm cake over to my parent's house so that we wouldn't be late for dinner. The frosting was starting to melt in our hot car, so I threw it in the fridge at my parent's house.

I waited a while and thought the cakes were cooled and frosted them up. They weren't cool enough and by the time I transported the cake into the fridge, it was sliding in the cake keeper.


Not a good thing.

The happy part is, even though this cake turned out looking more like a "Cake Wreck" than a true "Sunday Sweet", it still tasted fabulous!

Here's to trying new things, even if they don't turn out perfect the first time. And here's to another life lesson on why we need patience in this wonderful world we live in!

Button Snake

This was one of the quickest little projects I have put together. Hooray for using up scraps of this and that to create something fun and useful! I found this cute idea over at The Toby Show and knew with my stash of ribbons and buttons and felt (oh my!) that I could whip this up in no time. Andrew couldn't wait to get his hands on it and play away. This is a great way to practice buttoning and to work those cute little finger muscles for better fine motor control. (Sorry the teacher in me had to say that.) Enjoy!

An Unexpected "Vacation"

(Sorry no pics, just reflections today.)

This weekend, we took an unplanned trip to Gallop, New Mexico. My sweet 13 year old cousin, Savannah McMullin died in a car accident while traveling with her family on a camping trip. It is a parent's worst nightmare. It was heartbreaking. Although she did not survive, many miracles happened to help her wonderful family. What a blessing the gospel is to us, to know of Heavenly Father's love, to know we will see her again and be together again.

We took our unscheduled trip to New Mexico with my family, driving in two cars as a little caravan. My boys are so young and don't really understand funerals, so they were just happy to be going on vacation. (Eating fast food and driving in the car for a long period is a vacation for them!)

We drove through Holbrook to get to Gallop. If any of you have an obsessive Cars fan (or two) in your home, you may know that this is the town that was the main inspiration for Radiator Springs. It may as well have been Radiator Springs to Andrew. He was enchanted. He wanted to stop and stay. We stopped at a McDonald's and let him get a Happy Meal. Kid food heaven. Adult food nightmare...

We spent the afternoon and evening with the McMullins, celebrated Kyle's 7th birthday, and Grandma Smith's 80th. We had dinner and lots of cake and ice cream, and ended the evening with our own fireworks show. (Gotta love the legal fireworks in New Mexico.)

We stayed in a little hotel in Gallop called the Royal Inn (I think). It wasn't very royal, but it was a bed, it had air conditioning and a good rate. We even tried out the indoor pool that night. The boys loved the "pool house". Andrew loved it even more when he discovered that the hotel was off of Route 66!

The funeral was so hard and sad, as so many funerals for young ones are, but there was an overwhelming spirit of love and comfort as well. There were so many people. Savannah and her family are so loved by their community, ward members and family. Jenny and Aunt Paula sang, "For Good" from Wicked and it was beautifully done. Mom played the last piece of music that Savannah played before their trip, from "Pride and Prejudice." It was haunting and beautiful as well. Her father spoke, her sisters spoke. It was a sweet service and strengthened my testimony.

The caravan to the cemetary was so long, at least 30 cars. Zach and Bryan sang, "The Lord is my Shepard" and it was lovely. Then, we went back to the church for dinner and visiting. This was not an ideal family reunion, but it was so good to see family there. I was so grateful that we could be there.

Driving back on Saturday evening after the funeral, both boys fell asleep in the car and missed Holbrook. "Mr. 4" cried for a good 5 minutes or more when he found out he missed it. I don't think I have ever heard someone cry, "I want to go back to Holbrook!" before. Then we stopped in Payson for Wendy's and he was a happy boy again. What an unusual, yet suprisingly uplifting, little trip.