Thursday, February 12, 2015

Disneyland Fitness & Nutrition Worksheet


     Now that I am getting back into regular life after having a baby, we are able to make more trips to Disneyland again!  YAY!  Seriously, it is my home.  I always feel happy at Disneyland and could stay all day long.  Since we do stay most of the day, we end up eating there a lot.  I am a huge fan of Disneyland food.  It is SO good.  A little pricey, but very delicious and filling.  A few of my favorites are not very expensive like the Corn Dog (best corn dog ever!!) and the Clam Chowder Bread Bowl.  I usually just share one with my kids and it is plenty for half the day.  My husband would joke about all the hidden calories in something like a corn dog or churro, so I decided to do some research.  I was pretty certain that with all the walking we do at Disneyland, that the calories are gone by the time we leave the park.  I put together a worksheet with some of the staple foods at Disneyland for those interested in finding out the results.

Here is my
DISNEYLAND FITNESS & NUTRITION WORKSHEET.
Have fun!

Friday, February 6, 2015

Homeschooling Dads: When Our Sweethearts Homeschool...

     With Valentine's Day only a week away, I thought it appropriate to dedicate a post to our beloved sweethearts.
My husband with Marley and Dylan at Yosemite.
Hiking and learning about the Giant Sequoias.

     One of my most favorite things about homeschooling is seeing daddies take an active role in the process.  Luckily, my husband is 100% supportive of our decision to homeschool.  He finds it enjoyable to be involved in all the educational experiences, and he even comes up with some great ideas to include in our curriculum! I love it!!
     I saw a couple photos of dads teaching their children, and I was inspired to write a blog post about it.  Usually, dads are at work the majority of the day and cannot engage in most of the activities we plan.  However, there are some very dedicated dads who make sure to find some time to take an active role in educating their children.  These dads are, well, for lack of a better word...AWESOME!  I had some homeschoolers send me photos of their husbands leading some homeschool activities and enriching their children's education.  These photos are just darling!!

   
     Here is Randy and his son Edan learning how to take care of a garden, making tissue box shoes for lace-tying practice, and constructing a bird feeder.  Way to go Randy!



     Here is another dad constructing with legos with his daughter and helping his son build with wood.  Great job!


      This is 5 year old Joshua with his daddy at the zoo, taking a closer look at the elephant and rhinoceros. Adorable.

     Here is Taylor, Brent, and their dad building lego sets together.  Aww, legos are a timeless activity!

     The photos below were sent in by Cassi, who says, "What we have learned as a homeschool family is that it's not always about the quantity of time, but more about the quality of time. When your there BE THERE COMPLETELY!!!"  Dad helped his kids build a windmill to charge a AA battery.  Checking out the space station.  Enjoying a football game.  And just doing homework together.  Wow, looks like lots of fun!



     This daddy took some time to build with legos with his kids and also give them some pointers on firearm safety. Haha ;)

     
     Here is Don teaching about the brain and teaching his son Caleb about the surface of Mars.  Uh oh, looks like an alien attack! Heehee ;)

     Here is a dad AND a grandpa assisting with some archery practice with their little ones. Awww, love it.





   

   

















     This is dad Shane with his family: Christina, Jon, Sam, and Ben; as they volunteer their time at Feed My Starving Children.  Keep up the good work!

     These last two photos were taken by personal friends of mine.  They are not homeschoolers, but they were able to capture precious teaching moments between their husbands and little ones.

     Here is Nicole's husband and their two sons.  She shared the photo expressing that seeing her husband teach their sons how to use tools & build was a precious moment. <3

          This is Sara's son sitting with dad in front of their map.  Sara said her husband was giving his son a fun geography lesson by discussing where different cartoon characters live throughout the world.  Haha.  Love it!
     This Valentine's Day, take a moment to hug your sweetheart and thank him for his involvement with your children.  These efforts make all the difference in the world to our kids.  Our children are cherishing these moments in their hearts.  They are not only learning skills and concepts, but more importantly, they are learning that their dads love and respect them.  They will grow up knowing their dads believe in them and are always there to support and encourage them.  This is an invaluable lesson that is guaranteed to pave the way for happiness in their lives.  
     To all those devoted daddies..THANK YOU! <3   


Friday, January 30, 2015

"My Family" Preschool/Kindergarten Lesson Plan

     We did a week of "Family" themed activities.  This was a very generic subject, but we had fun talking about family members and what they mean to us.  We also briefly discussed how to make a family tree and we made a basic version of one.  Genealogy is am important part of our faith.  We feel it is so important to know about our ancestors and to keep record of their lives, culture, and progress.  I also taught Marley the importance of journals, which made me realize we need to put together a journal for her.  To be continued on another blog post ;) ...

Here is my outline for our "My Family" lesson plan:                        

PICTURE BOOKS:
- Are You My Mother?
- Daddy Did I Ever Say? I Love You, Love You, Every Day
- Song and Dance Man
- All Kinds of Families!


EDUCATIONAL BOOKS:
- Who's In My Family?: All About Our Families
- Me and My Family Tree


WORKSHEETS:
- Big or Small
- Family Counting
- Creative Writing: I love my ________ because...
- Semi Circular Family Tree
- Make Your Own Printable Handwriting Worksheets

A confused look on Marley's face.  I told her to practice writing her name.  After starting, she stopped and said, "Hey, this is not my name.  This is YOUR name!" Haha.  Just keeping her on her toes. ;)

Preschool, Family Tree, Kindergarten
Handprint Family Tree
ART/CRAFT PROJECTS:
- Family Tree
- Family Magazine Collage


GAMES/ACTIVITIES:
- Family Bingo
- Family Memory Game
- Mommy Says (Like "Simon Says")

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Pants Refashioned to Lace Trim Shorts

   
     What do you do when your little girl is so active that she thrashes her clothes?  Throw them away...or make them work.  Today I attempted to make them work.
     These grey pants from Old Navy had gnarly holes at the knees, so I cut right above the holes and hemmed them to be shorts.  When I put them on Marley, she asked if they were boy shorts, haha!  I said, "No, they are girl shorts, but we can make them look more like girl shorts."  I rummaged through my sewing supplies and found some cute lace trim.  Perfect!  I just added the lace trim to the ends and it made all the difference.  Marley loves her new shorts.  Her response was, "Oooh, these are so cute!"  Such a girl!

 

 So we ended up having a lesson on being resourceful and creative with clothes.  It was a nice project I could do beside my daughter for Home Ec this week. ;)



Monday, January 26, 2015

Field Trip to Creamistry! Ice Cream Made with Liquid Nitrogen (Science Fun for Kids)

     What better way to engage your child in a scientific activity than to eat some ICE CREAM!  We heard about a new way of serving ice cream.  Some places are specializing in making the ice cream right in front of you by freezing it with liquid Nitrogen.  Science experiment meets ice cold deliciousness.   Sounds perfect!  For our Family Night we decided to do a field trip to our local Creamistry.  Before we went, I did a basic explanation of elements and Nitrogen to my daughter (almost 5).  Obviously this kind of information won't sink in completely, but I think it's appropriate and respectful to try to explain things to young ones.  I told her we were going somewhere to see how liquid Nitrogen works.  She was excited, and she didn't even know we were going to eat ice cream.  I wanted to keep that part a surprise. ;)  She even asked, "Can we go get ice cream after the science experiment?" Hahaha.  We said we'd think about it.
     She had the biggest smile when we walked in and she saw all the yummy toppings.  Her dad enjoyed explaining the process to her and giving a few quick facts about Nitrogen.  And when the liquid Nitrogen started going, it was all smiles.  Marley loved the whole thing!  And our whole family loved eating the finished products.







Here are some awesome educational links that can supplement a field trip to Creamistry or Sub Zero Ice Cream.

Periodic Table of Elements for Kids

Elements for Kids: Nitrogen

Nitrogen - Quick Facts

Liquid Nitrogen Science Experiment (YouTube video)

Nitrogen Frozen Whipped Cream Experiment --- Makes your kid look like a dragon! :)

Things To Do with Liquid Nitrogen

Monday, January 19, 2015

The Joys of Cardboard

     What is it about cardboard that makes us homeschoolers excited?  Every time I see cardboard, I want to store it away and do something creative with it in our lesson plans.  I say, "Why are you throwing away that perfectly good box? ;)  Toilet paper rolls, paper towel rolls, big boxes, small boxes...we see possibilities and can't quite put our finger on what they are. Haha!

Here are some fun links I found to help guide our imaginations:

- 101 Things To Do With a Toilet Paper Roll
- 22 Kid Crafts for Toilet Paper Rolls
- Toilet and Paper Towel Roll Crafts
- 101 Things To Do With a Cardboard Box
- 30 Cardboard Box Crafts
- Cardboard Box Crafts
- Egg Crate Crafts
- Egg Carton Crafts for Kids
- What Can You Make From An Egg Carton?

Ready?..Set...CRAFT!



Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Sibling Rivalry - Does It Ever End?

     My daughters have recently developed a routine of playing happily together for a few hours and then out of nowhere being at each others throats.  They are only 4 and 2, so it isn't too bad.  Just a bunch of screaming and taking toys away from each other, and a whole lot of..."Moooooommmyyyyyy!  I don't get it.  But I never had a sister.  I only had one brother, and we got along all the time.  I don't ever remember fighting with him.  Our personalities worked well together, because I am a very proactive and passionate person whereas my brother has a very passive laid back personality.  He usually went along with what I said.  I guess that made it easy for us to get along.  But both of my girls are very stubborn and willful.  They both know what they want and stick to it.  I have talked with a few moms and they say it is normal.  Oh good!  But still, it drives me up the wall to hear them screaming at each other and fighting.  Especially when one moment they are best friends, like this...

 ...And the next minute is a "Stay on your side!" kind of day, like this...

     I try to encourage using calm words to express feelings. But when emotions are running high in a house with three females, things get a little crazy pretty fast.  We all end up yelling.  It's not good.  And obviously, sibling rivalry can make homeschooling quite challenging.  Not much can get done when they are in each other's space and antagonizing each other.  To us moms it seems so easy---can't they just get along?!  Why isn't it easy for them?
     So here is what I want to know:
     How do all you moms out there deal with sibling rivalry?  What situations have you faced and what have you learned from them?  Does it magically end one day?  I'm only a couple years into this adventure, so give me your bits of wisdom, and wish me luck. ;)