Salt Dough Ornaments

I decided to jump on the bandwagon and make some salt dough ornaments with the boys. I've never done it before, and knew Jacob would really enjoy it this year. Surprisingly, I was able to get Joshua to paint four ornaments, which is three more than I expected him to do.

 

I must admit, I followed one recipe I found online, and it came out like soup. Bob needed to help, since I lost my patience with the dough, and he fixed it all up so we could cut the ornaments out and get them baking. Not my finest moment, that's for sure!

We let those bake for a good four hours. The next day, I got everything ready for the boys to paint after they finished lunch. I wanted everything to be already set so we could just get started and not make them wait on me to gather things together. I found the acrylic paint on sale at Hobby Lobby for about 50 cents a bottle. We've never used acrylic paint, so I made sure to have the boys get their shirts off because I wasn't sure how hard the paint is to get out of clothes.

 

 I taped some wax paper to cookie sheets for the boys to paint on, so I didn't have to worry about where the paint ended up. I usually put down newspaper, but this ended up being much cleaner.



Joshua playing with a train at the table, saying "cheese," while he wasn't painting.

 Jacob was hard at work. He started off using other colors, but painted almost all ornaments silver once he discovered we actually had silver paint.

 Joshua's four ornaments - the plane, his "J" for our tree, a circle, and a fire truck.

 More silver ornaments!

 All of Jacob's ornaments (and my Christmas tree I did while Jacob was finishing).

 I let the ornaments dry overnight, and then used a brush-on glaze the next day to finish them off. Nice and shiny Christmas ornaments! I am very pleased with how they turned out!

Garfield Park

Garfield Park and Consevatory has a train display every year. We have never been, and I really wanted to fit in in this year, especially when I saw they offered one free day (December 15) where you could see the trains, visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus, and make a craft with the elves.

 

Unfortunately, Bob had to work that day for a wrestling meet at the school he teaches at. Although we missed him, the boys LOVED having Grandma and Grandpa with them for the morning!

 

The conservatory was just gorgeous, and made for some really pretty pictures of the boys. But, I really loved the pictures of them with the trains!

 Joshua calling the fish, and trying to feed them his imaginary food.

 Our visit with Santa. Joshua surprised us and asked for a bike. Where did that come from?! Sorry, Joshua, but we already own like a million bikes, so Santa will not be packing another one into his sleigh.

 Santa gave the boys a piece of chocolate, which is about the only way we could get a picture with the boys standing still that day.

 We drove over to a different building to visit with Mrs. Claus. Kind of a blah visit, since the boys did not want to color any of the coloring sheets they had there. But, they scored a candy cane from sweet Mrs. Claus.

 We headed over for our last stop of the day to make a toy car with the elves. Jacob worked really hard on his, and he was so proud of his toy. Joshua was exhausted at that point, and really just wanted to go home!

I think the boys had a fantastic day, and we are so happy we finally made it over to see the train and do something new this holiday season!

Museum and Zoo at Christmas Time

I haven't done a great job at updating this with our fun activities throughout the month of December. Like I said in my previous post, I made a calendar at the beginning of the month and wanted to get as much into the month as possible. I love the age of the boys and how much they love to participate in activities with Christmas on the mind.

My list included: Garfield Park's free day to see the trains; Eiteljorg musuem for their train display; Children's Museum; Christmas at the Zoo; MOPS Christmas Party; making Christmas ornaments; decorating cookies.

The only item not crossed off our list yet is decorating cookies. The only item not making it to the list for next year is Christmas at the Zoo. Way too crowded. Will revisit when the boys are older and don't want to run around as much.

We started off the season with a trip to the Children's Museum to see Santa for the first time. December 1 was the first Saturday of the month, which means members get access to the museum an hour earlier than the public. We took advantage of the smaller crowds during such a busy season and went down the slide first thing. Jacob and I raced, and Bob and Josh raced.

 We went to visit Santa! Someone at the front desk said he wasn't there yet, but we saw him walk through the lobby while we were in line, and then they told us he was in fact there and ready for the boys to disclose their wish lists!

 Jacob lifted Santa's hat and whispered into his ear. This was actually quite a long visit! Look how pleased Joshua is. He just couldn't contain his excitement, haha.

 When Jacob was done with his first round of whispering, Santa asked him, "Do you want me to bring you surprises?" Jacob assumed this meant Santa didn't quite understand the list, so he whispered in his ear again. Hilarious! I asked Jacob was he asked Santa for, and he told me, "You'll just have to wait and see what he brings me on Christmas morning!"

We went down the slide one more time, and we took a quick visit to the dinosaur area. This picture of Joshua just cracked me up!

 That night we invited mom to join us for Christmas at the Zoo. What a mess! It was SO busy, and I was just so nervous with the kids. The weather was super warm, so I'm sure everyone had the same idea I had in getting this checked off the list without freezing. We didn't stay too long, and didn't even get to ride the train because the line was so long. We took the boys and went for ice cream instead.

Funny boys

*Jacob heard a joke from his Transformer's Rescue Bots show, but I hadn't heard it, apparently. He walked up to me this morning and said, "Mom, what's under there?" I said, "under where?" Jacob starts laughing like crazy and said, "I made you say underwear!" Silly boy. We've come a long way from his first joke..."knock knock" who's there? "CHIPS!" when he was two years old.
*Joshua is talking more and more, but doesn't really like to show himself off. We had a huge train track set up in the living room over the weekend, but we tore it down Sunday night. He starts screaming, "Don't! Put it back!" over and over again. Apparently, all you have to do is make him angry and you can get longer sentences out of him.
*I took the boys for a hair cut this morning. It works out nicely because Jacob prefers the pink mini cooper to sit in, and Joshua can sit in Lightning McQueen. We were in the care later in the day, and I see Jacob trying to smooth his hair down. I asked him what he was doing.
Jacob: "I forgot I have my program to keep my hair nice for."
Me: "You're done with your program for the year."
Jacob: "Oh, then I forgot we have our pictures. Christmas pictures."
Me: "We aren't taking Christmas pictures, honey."
Jacob: "Then why did I get my hair cut?"
I guess you need a big event in order to get your hair cut around here.
*Our man of few words, Joshua (even though he really has a ton of words and phrases, just doesn't perform on command, haha), says things like candy cane, more candy, ninja turtles, Bumblebee, Tick Tock Croc, give back, no brother, brother nice, and more funny sayings effortlessly. What he chooses to say compared to an average two year old cracks me up.
*Joshua has understood hide-and-seek for a while now, but he will now cover his eyes and say "two, two, two, come!" when it is his turn to count. Adorable.
*Joshua is still  our "sitter." He sits on everything, and it doesn't help that Jacob thinks it's hilarious and tells Joshua, "Sit on my head!"
*The boys have been going to bed and down for naps at the same time for a while now. It is so nice, because I use to have to wait until Joshua was asleep first so Jacob could get some rest. But, Joshua no longer fools around in his crib before he falls asleep, so they just go to bed at the same time, and it works out nicely.
*Jacob and Joshua received an email message from Santa. It was like Christmas morning for them already to see their faces when Santa said their name, showed them a picture he had of them, and told them they were on the nice list. Priceless.
*Jacob will lean in help Joshua fix his toys when they get pulled apart or fall off the track. I sometimes ask him to help, but most of the time, I catch him coming to his brother's aid without anyone asking. Sometimes, he doesn't even realize I see him doing it, which makes me even prouder of him.

I must say, even though there are only 8 days until Christmas and I should feel rushed and hurried, this has been such a nice, relaxing holiday season. I made a calendar at the beginning of the month to make sure we got in all of the museums, displays, etc. that I wanted us to visit. We've done everything we planned on doing, and have really enjoyed all the moments spent together. I feel like this year we were really able to enjoy all of the season and not feel stressed. I hope it can always go this smoothly. Even though Joshua had an ear infection for part of the month, we were still able to enjoy our month. These boys are just amazing, and I love spending time with them and hearing all they have to say. They are such funny, entertaining, loving, kind, energetic, smart boys. I am so proud of Jacob as a big brother I could burst. And, Joshua is really following Jacob's lead and watches out for his big brother as well. Joshua loves helping his brother, and I just love watching their relationship grow. They are such best friends, and love playing together.

MOPS Christmas Party

Tonight we went to my MOPS family Christmas party. We had a great time decorating cookies, making an ornament and seeing Santa!

 Jacob was thrilled when I told him Chase would be there. He was confused because Chase is in elementary school and isn't at our meetings, so Jacob wasn't expecting him at the party.

 Jacob is in there, right under Santa's beard. The kids loved Santa's arrival!

 And Joshua decided to give Santa a little pat on the rear.

 Jacob telling some other mom, "Oh no, what am I going to do with such a silly brother!" He sure did get quite a laugh out of everyone.

 Chase and Jacob.

 Waiting in line to see Santa. I love Joshua's face here.

 SANTA! Jacob asked for a new Optimus Prime Rescue Bot this time, and Joshua asked for cars. Funny boys! What a fun night together as a family!

Christmas Program

Jacob had his preschool Christmas program on Sunday. The program started at 1:30, so I was a little concerned about Jacob being tired, or Joshua melting down by missing nap time, but everything went well!

 

Jacob got on stage, sat down, and then stood up saying, "Mom? Mom?" until he found me. And then, he waved like crazy!

 Followed by the longest session of silly faces I have ever seen. Which is hilarious, especially since he doesn't really make silly faces that often!

 Singing some songs!

 So glad Bob caught this picture. Jacob moved his eyes back and forth for a while, and it was just hilarious!

 Leaving the stage.

 Jacob and his sweet friend, Maddox.

 And this is where Joshua spent the time during the program. He camped out on the floor playing with his Buzz and Woody, eating pretzels, and hanging out.

The program was adorable. Jacob loved that we recorded the program and we watched some of it last night. On the way home, Jacob said, "That was fun! I didn't think it was going to be fun!" I think practice made him bored with the idea of a program, but he had a good time. At one point, he started taking his arm out of his sweater, but luckily, he stuck his arm back through and finished the program fully dressed.

We have a READER!

Jacob read the BOB Book 1 and 2 for the first time today! Here is a quick video of him reading the "Mat" book for the third or fourth time.

I cannot believe how quickly he caught on and how he was sounding out the words and putting sounds together. I am so very proud of him for working so hard today, and for being so proud of himself for reading for the first time. I am really looking forward to working with him more on reading and sounding out words.

He just turned four and a half November 30...I am so impressed with him!! Way to go, Jacob!

Navigating Preschool

Navigating preschool is hard. And sometimes makes me worried about dealing with issues in elementary school.

But, I remind myself that I should be thankful that I am the one at home getting to hear these stories when Jacob gets in the car after school. Sometimes, if you don't hear them immediately, the kids will lose their sense of urgency in telling you their stories. And then, I would be missing out on some great, teachable moments with Jacob.

Some kids like to pick on other kids. Some kids like to pinch. And some kids are wonderful friends for your son. Some kids help bring out the best.

And this year, I find myself talking with Jacob a lot about how to choose his friends, and how to deal with situations that are difficult for a four-year-old to understand. That sometimes, a friend isn't really a friend if they hurt you all the time. And sometimes, you need to pick friends who will bring out the best in you - who are good students, listen to the teachers, and want to be nice to you.

Most of all, regardless of what other people do, I am teaching Jacob that he is in charge of himself. Always. No one can tell him what to do or how to act, what to think and how to play. And hopefully, this becomes a habit for him that he carries with him in future friendships. That Jacob can think for himself and make his own decisions. Just because another boy thinks something is funny doesn't mean it is the right thing to do. And, just because someone else tells you to do something doesn't mean you should do it.

I can see Jacob brighten up with more knowledge about friendships and how to deal with situations at school. He is already struggling with not wanting to tell the teacher about something because he doesn't want his friend to get in trouble. I am glad he is compassionate towards his friends, but pray he finds a balance between not wanting his friends in trouble, and avoiding becoming a target for kids who do mean things to others. I don't want someone to pinch him because they know he won't tell. I don't want someone to say mean things to him just because he won't get them in trouble.

Friendships are hard to navigate, even in preschool. I am thankful for the great friends Jacob has made. And, in a way, I'm thankful for these difficult lessons he is learning. At least right now, the consequences are minor. Being pinched when the teacher isn't looking isn't as bad as what he could come across in elementary or middle school. But, these smaller situations will give him an opportunity to learn to stand up for himself and know how to handle the bigger situations when they arise. I wish I could keep him in a bubble forever, but since that's not possible, I'm thankful that I can be here to guide him through the tough times and talk with him about finding a solution that works best for him. Teaching him how to handle friends and teachers is so important, and I am so thankful I am home with him after preschool to hear what he has to say and what he is thinking.

Jacob has brought a lot of prayer into this house. I am thankful for his praying heart, and his wise words. The end of his prayer before nap today said, "and thank you Lord for the little boys in my class, and I pray you help them learn and be friends." He is so sweet, and I am so glad to have a son who can pray openly with me about problems he is having and lead me to be a better mom and encourage him to pray whenever he wants to. During his prayer, he said the wrong name for one of his friends. Afterwards, he said, "does God know when I say something wrong, and he can still know I'm thankful for my friend XXX?" When I told him yes, that God knows what he meant, he smiled and closed his eyes to take his nap. I love how safe he looked, and how he truly knows in his heart that he is being watched over and taken care of.

Halloween Clearance

This year, we spent $50 on costumes for the kids. Not complaining, because we definitely got our money out of the Bumblebee and Jake costumes, and the boys were in love with their choices. But, since we know our boys love certain characters and we know that they are both pretty easy going in terms of choosing what they want to be (we can suggest they be something and they are fine with that), we decided to hit up Target the day after Halloween and see if they had anything that could be used for next year. I really wanted a Buzz costume in Joshua's size for next year, but they only had one in Jacob's size for next year. But, at least Joshua scored a Woody costume for next year!

 

Here we have Optimus Prime and Joshua just hanging out in his Buzz pajamas (which means tomorrow morning he will be yelling at me when I get him dressed and take his Buzz shirt off). Jacob had already told us before Halloween this year that next year he wants to be Optimus. He was so happy when this costume was in the bag. It is super long on him right now, and because of how the legs flare out at the bottom it makes it hard for him to wear it around the house right now, so he'll just have to wait it out!

 The Iron Man costume fits really well, and we can just roll up the legs for now. This was by far Joshua's favorite costume Jacob put on. Joshua kept saying "Iron Man" and wanted Jacob to wear his mask. Whenever Jacob would pull his mask up, Joshua would walk over and push it back on his face.

 Joshua loves hugging Jacob when he's dressed up!

 There is my handsome super hero!

 Joshua put on his Woody costume for a little while. It is very large on him right now - kids grow so fast between 1 and 2 years old, that I know this will fit him pretty well next year. It'll still probably be a little big, but we always have the kids wear clothes under their costumes, so buying them big is a must so he has room underneath next year for warm clothes if we get another cold year!

 Jacob in the Buzz costume with his side kick Woody. (We rolled Joshua's costume up into his pajamas so he didn't trip and hurt himself).

Great entertainment tonight, and all of the costumes were half off! Great deal! We bought all 4 of these costumes for less than the price of the 2 costumes the boys wore this year! And, I'm hoping the boys will be wearing the Buzz and Woody costumes when we see Disney on Ice in January, and maybe for Joshua's birthday this year since it will be a Toy Story themed get together.

Halloween 2012

I think all parents were nervous about how cold Halloween was going to be this year. Although it was definitely cold, especially compared to last year's beautiful weather, we had a fabulous Halloween!

 

Jacob had preschool in the morning, followed by some ghost-shaped grilled cheese sandwiches. Then, we loaded up and headed to see the Wiley clan for some trick-or-treating in their area. We got to see the police and fire stations, and were lucky enough to get to see the fire trucks!

 

I didn't have my camera with me when we had all of the kids together, so this one is missing the cute little June (who isn't so little anymore - walking around like crazy and is the sweetest little girl ever!). But these boys had so much fun running around and getting to play together on Halloween. Of course, Joshua was only happy because he was able to eat his sucker the entire time, resulting in red goo all over the front of his Jake costume.

 Jacob in the fire truck. Joshua didn't want to get in, and just kept saying "no" every time I tried to put him up there.

 This is Joshua demanding I open his sucker. He loves suckers more than anything, and just kept screaming "open!" and pouting until I opened it up.

 The boys running in between buildings - nothing like Spider Man, Batman and Bumblebee running off together! Our little Jake was pulling up the rear, content with his sucker and in no hurry to continue.

 We headed back to the Wiley's house to play for a while and then headed to my parents' house for some dinner and trick-or-treating. We always go with their neighbors and her grandkids. Jacob looks forward to it every year, and really loves having a group of kids to run around with. He also thinks this little girl is pretty and adores her.

 Joshua cooperating for pictures this year - such a change from last year when he wasn't able to eat candy yet and we pushed him in the stroller for the most part of the night!

 Jacob, Amaya and Jackson would not move from this spot the entire time we were waiting to go trick-or-treating. So funny!

 Going through Jacob's candy to take out the stuff that he couldn't have. He chose a piece of candy to eat - ironically a very hard to chew piece of taffy-like candy. He didn't like it so much, so we let him have some M&M's, too.

 Joshua with yet another sucker! This boy is just nuts about those things!

Such a wonderful night with the boys, and so lucky we got to get some trick-or-treating in despite the cold weather. Joshua went back early with my mom, and Jacob did a little more of the neighborhood and then we hitched a ride back once Jacob looked exhausted and making us carry his pumpkin from house to house.