Feast!

Maddie had her Thanksgiving feast at school last month and it was SO sweet.

My mom and I went up to help/watch and the kids were adorable.

The director makes a turkey and the classes bring all the sides.

Maddie had some biscuits, applesauce, and milk.  :)

Can she just stay in preschool forever??  :)

Thanksgiving

It was a little bit of a different Thanksgiving this year.  We're trying to figure out some curveballs we've been thrown and in all honesty, I wasn't necessarily feeling real thankful.

But then, all I have to do is look at these pictures, and think of the time spent with these people, and I'm overwhelmed with thankfulness.  Because hello, thankfulness isn't about things or money or anything like that.  It's so much more.  For me, this year, I got to focus on the people, the relationships, and the moments that make me feel so blessed.

So thankful.

 It was Grayson's first trip to Las Vegas.  He got the memo that it's the city that never sleeps and actively participated by waking up every. single. hour.

Both nights.

When people ask why we "only" stayed two nights, I laugh.  In a manic way.  Because two nights feel like two years when you're trying to make sure the 6 month old doesn't wake the 4 year old (or your hotel neighbors {my parents on one side and sisters on the other}).

 But other than being in a little bit of a sleep deprivation haze, I'm so grateful for our trip.  My parents (aka: Nana and Papa) made it magical for us.  We needed to get away and it came at the perfect time.

 We visited my Aunt Millie (well, Great Aunt Millie), ate too much food, saw the Muppets movie (eh, Mike and Maddie did; I dodged that bullet!  Ha!), and just relaxed (again, not at night, since our little man cried, laughed, and nursed all night long!). 

Ohmygoodness.

These two.  Last year, she was three and he was in my tummy.  I was still incredibly scared of something going wrong and losing him and madly in love with both of them.

So, a different Thanksgiving, but a wonderful one all the same.

Tot School: Thanksgiving Feast

I know... This is way overdue! I'm (attempting) to catch up on blogging and I think I left off at Thanksgiving Tot School! I have about 18 pictures of the trays and crafts we did, but that seemed overwhelming. Ha! So instead, I'll just post some cute pictures from the feast we all had in our backyard!

We had mini cornbread muffins, turkey rolls, applesauce and juice. :)

A long, low table was covered in butcher paper so that the kids could color while they munched.

They also wore their headdresses that were made during craft time.

So, SO much fun!

I've had to take a break from doing Tot School, which was an incredibly hard decision (made harder when Maddie asks when the next one is!). I have a tendency to take on a little too much and am constantly trying to find a balance. And so, I'm re-balancing and seeing how that goes! :)

Vacation!!

I'd like to share the one, and only, picture I took on our vacation over the holiday weekend:

That's right.

One picture.

I don't know what I was thinking!

But, we did have an awesome time in Las Vegas (though I have decided that I'm definitely not a fan of the crowds, casinos or ridiculous amount of smoke being blown in our faces).

We had absolutely amazing seats to see The Lion King (the tickets were given to us, and I think each one was $170! Insane!). We also had Thanksgiving dinner with my family, aunts and cousin, as well as lots of visiting, relaxing and napping (well, napping for me!). We took Maddie to see Tangled and all just loved it. SO cute!

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving!

*I'm so behind on blogging... I'm trying to play catch up because I have some seriously cute Tot School pics from our Thanksgiving feast!

Tot School: Fall

We had another group Tot School today and, as always, had a blast. The kids are really getting into such a great rhythm and were just awesome in all their work!

Here were our outdoor centers and crafts:

Make a Fall Tree

I always put directions, as well as a completed example (thank you Maddie) up as a reference. All the necessary materials for each activity are right underneath.

My tiny model is totally blocking it, but there was a big box full of silk leaves, pumpkins and beads that the kids could explore.

Corn Cob Painting

Dot Stamping

Sensory table with pinto beans, rice, tiny pumpkins, leaves, scoops and measuring cups

Sink or Float Science Activity

(There was a big bucket of water underneath)

The kids loved this one.

Marble Painting

(also a huge hit)

Now, onto the tray work...

Dry pouring with lentils, peas and beans

Tonging acorns in a real/plastic pattern in the paint tray

Tonging pumpkins in a color pattern

(I realize that I own 7 different types of tongs; ha!)

Tweezing foam beads into the ice cube mold

Tweezing pompoms into pumpkin mold

Creating a number line with fall leaves and counting out the correct number of pebbles

Color sorting of tiny objects into a divided plate

Turkey math mat with foam dice and wood chips

Pattern strips with fall pieces and early phonemic awareness (listening for initial sounds)

Matching picture to word card to tiny object

Counting with pumpkins, leaves and acorns

Adding play dough berries to a pie :)

Scarecrow count and clip cards

Letter assessments with magnets

And, I think that was it! We had such a fun time. In circle time, we worked in our journals, learned a fall poem and decorated cupcakes. LOVE our Tot School days!

Being Thankful for It All

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday (or, for our Canadian friends, we hope you had a great Thursday). :)

We enjoyed a day packed with family, friends, and food. Maddie and Michael were busy making desserts (I'll do a separate post, possibly without pictures, since Maddie insisted on only wearing panties during the baking process).

To be honest, it was a tough holiday for me. I wanted to be overflowing with smiles and cheer, to be a walking example of thankfulness for God's love, but...

It was just hard.

I kept thinking how yesterday would've marked 17 weeks of pregnancy. Yesterday I might have felt the baby move or yesterday my belly might have been big and round (with a pregnancy; not just from eating!).

But, it wasn't and I know I let myself dip my toe, for all too long, into the pool of, "Why?Why?Why?"

Sometimes I feel like for every two steps forward, I find myself being pulled one step back. And, I can tell when it's happening. I get cloudy and sad and drift into a vast land of "What-ifs." And even though I know when that mood is about to strike, it's hard to pull myself back to reality.

So, I spent much of the afternoon yesterday in that place. I felt incomplete and discontent. I often feel an aching toward searching for something. Something that's missing. Someone that's missing. My dreams are often filled with me searching and searching, but waking up with such a hurt...

It wasn't until last night, after Maddie was tucked into bed, that I really let myself go there. Go to that sad place, acknowledge it and let it go... If just for a very little bit.

Because I am thankful. I look at where my marriage was, just this time last year, and I feel so terribly blessed. I thank God for his restoration in our lives and for his faithfulness in carrying each of us through our own struggles. The warmth of Maddie's hugs and the passion in her, "I love you Mama!" is enough to stop me in my step, no matter what I'm doing, and thank Him for this little girl.

A warm house, family around a table, the two year old, spinning circles in her favorite twirly skirt...

I am thankful.

And, I am blessed.

We all have our thorns we wear. Some are big, some are smaller, but they all hurt.

But last night, I was thankful that I could take those hurts, lay them at His feet, and finally, give thanks for all I do have.

Now... Pictures! Grandma took some good family ones, so hopefully (hint, hint), she'll email those soon. :)

Little Miss Sass wasn't totally excited about Nana's house being so packed. But, a laminated Max and Ruby placemat (thank you Keri!) kept her happy and occupied. I brought a tiny plate, cup and silverware (from her play kitchen) so that she could set her own place at the table.

After eating (and a wardrobe change for the toddler), we headed to the school across the street.

My sisters and I rode bikes.

They make me wish I was a twin, too. :)

Maddie was very excited to dig in the sand with Poppa, TT and Veronica.

But.

As soon as we got there, she announced that she had to go to the bathroom.

And so...

We turned and headed home. :)

Maddie's Newest Love

About a month ago, I printed this book from my favorite resource site, Making Learning Fun. It sat in our project pile for a week or so before we actually sat down to do it. I hesitated because I didn't know if she'd have the stamina to stick with coloring the whole book in or I thought she just might not be interested. I was very wrong and making books has quickly become one of her favorite things to do.

This was the first book we made and it's probably still her favorite. I often catch her "reading" them to herself.

This is the cute last page of the leaf book.

We also made a book about colorful turkeys (this last page turned out very colorful!). I've also printed some off from here, which was a fun book about feelings and another one about families.

I'm loving the new experiences this brings and Maddie loves showing off, and reading, the new books that she made!

Tot School Time!

Another week of Tot School has passed, and a crafty one at that. Maddie and I stayed busy this week with art projects that she chose ("Let's make a snowman!") and new trays that I laid out for her. So... Here we go!

She loves watercolors and I can finally leave her to do this independently while I finish laundry or dishes. It took some practice, but she can (successfully) dip the brush in water and then paint (and then repeat). She made a ton of masterpieces this day that I have since turned around and used as birthday cards for friends and family.

Oh. My. Goodness. This was the biggest hit of the week. I've been wanting to try it with Maddie and when I finally picked up a pipette (a dollar at the local teacher supply store), I set it out. She was super interested in it and immediately chose it and sat down with it.

What they are are those bath tub suctions from the dollar store (we've used these many times to balance marbles on). I tinted some water blue (with food coloring; it didn't stain anything) and laid out the pipette. She had to transfer the water from the bowl to the tiny cup suctions on the shape. She loved this.

Since she was having such a good time with the starfish shape that I dug out a dinosaur and a duck, too. Annie and Megan were over and were so great to encourage, guide and help clean up (which is easily done with a dishtowel). She quickly and easily learned how to use the dropper and seriously stuck with this activity for a long time.

This was an inspiration from My Montessori Journey (love, love, love that blog!). Since I had all the materials on hand, I threw it together. One adjustment I made was stuffing some tissue paper into the salt shaker, since I cut the pipe cleaner "branches" too short and they were getting lost inside.

First, she had to place the branches through the salt shaker lid. Then, she slid the "leaves" onto the branches (aka: pony beads). I pulled fall-ish colors, to keep up with our ongoing leaf study. Such a great activity for fine motor development.

Another one from My Montessori Journey: turkey with removable feathers. Maddie has always had a tough time with clothespins (the feathers are glued onto mini clothespins) but has had a lot of interest in it this week. She's pulled it out almost daily to use and she IS getting better (even if the feathers are occasionally attached to his foot).

I think I've blogged about this Melissa and Doug product before, but I'm going to again. Ha! Maddie plays with this daily and we just love it. It's such great quality, it is a great tool for teaching or practicing shapes and colors and it's just fun. She's really been into following the pattern cards and I'm noticing that she is getting much better in sticking with a task (and that goes for all things lately; it's neat to see). It really is a great product. If I could have one complaint it would be that the corners of the shapes are rounded, which makes it hard for them to really "fit" together. It's not a huge thing, but now that she's into making pictures (as opposed to just putting them on the board), I do notice that it bugs her.

Oh! She even got to visit Daddy's classroom and participate in his Meet the Masters art presentation. Yay for Norman Rockwell and oil pastels!

I found these printables over at DLTK's crafts and Maddie has had a blast with them. They're really cool because they have blank circles that are the perfect shape for her dot stampers (which are, probably, her very favorite art product). I knew she'd go nuts for the scarecrow so I printed that one in color, but the rest were black and white (meaning that she colored them in and then stamped the spots). Love these and they're great for more precise fine motor work!

We had to make... Christmas cookies?

That's what happens when you ask the two year old what she'd like to bake. Ha!

I haven't talked about our activity bags in a while, but we are still using them and I'm constantly rotating new ones in (and old ones out). When we went out to dinner this week, I brought the Open and Shut bag, which is filled with different containers or objects to open and close. She loves this and puts forth a great amount of concentration to get all the little bottles and boxes and locks open. I also added in a handful of pennies, since she seems to enjoy hiding them inside and then "saving" them.

On one morning, I asked her what she'd like to create. She answered, "A snowboy and a snowlady!" And so, we did. I turned it into a shape and directional art lesson. She loves these little guys!

There was lots of Play-doh time this week, too. She has mastered the use of cookie cutters and has a great time stamping me out a "meal." This one included lots of flowers (which she calls broccoli) and a few gingerbread men (also known to her as cookies).

Inspired by Chasing Cheerios, I swapped out our spooky Halloween sensory box for more of a fall-themed one. I replaced the black beans with popcorn kernels and filled it with silk leaves, feathers, teeny-tiny buckets, plastic acorns, pom-poms (that, according to Maddie, are "fall apples") and a miniature turkey. It's a big hit.

She's resurrected the alphabet book we lovingly made (and, for whatever reason, stopped at the letter T) and we've gone through it daily. We really must pick up and finish the remaining letters because she likes it so much.

She had a blast with some chunky foam stamps shaped like ocean animals. I picked these up at Lakeshore for like, 70% off (they were coming out with a newer version).

And finally, in cleaning our garage, Mike found some games that I used to keep in my classroom for rainy days. The first one we played was Don't Spill the Beans. She didn't enjoy this one at all. In fact, she told me, "Let's put the beans away. They are bad."

And yet, Don't Break the Ice became an immediate favorite (unfortunate for me, as it takes a bit to set it up). Games are such a great way to practice early social skills and taking turns and being good winners and losers. We've had plenty of opportunities to put those things in action, since we played over and over and over again. :)

What a week, right?! Go check out the happenings of other tots by hopping over to the Tot School page!