Showing posts with label Sweet P. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sweet P. Show all posts
A Love Letter to my Daughter
Pine Cone Turkey
This week was full of Thanksgiving activities and turkeys, turkeys, turkeys! We went to a playdate and did a paper plate turkey with some friends, made a pilgrim and a Wampanoag out of TP rolls and made a few turkeys.
Sweet P's pine cone turkey is my fav and I love the colors that she picked for the feathers. We used a glue gun, but it's Dollar Tree glue so it's actually not really hot. I'd squirt out the glue for her and she'd stick on the feathers because it wasn't hot to the touch. Please assist your child if you have a very hot glue gun.
{What you need}
1 pine cone
2 googly eyes
1 beak (orange foam)
red pipe cleaner for waddle
plastic bottle cap + orange foam for base
an abundance of feathers!
hot glue or white glue
Affix eyes, beak and waddle. Glue base of pine cone to plastic bottle cap and cover with orange foam. Pick out feathers and start gluing!
{What you need}
1 pine cone
2 googly eyes
1 beak (orange foam)
red pipe cleaner for waddle
plastic bottle cap + orange foam for base
an abundance of feathers!
hot glue or white glue
Affix eyes, beak and waddle. Glue base of pine cone to plastic bottle cap and cover with orange foam. Pick out feathers and start gluing!
Isn't she beautiful?!
21 Days of Gratitude: Teaching Gratitude by Giving
Day 9: Today I'm grateful for the opportunity to give to or serve others, and that we are blessed with the resources to do so.
If there's one thing I fear, it's raising an ungrateful child. Probably because I was one. No really. It's embarrassing. And I'm praying history does not repeat itself and going to great lengths to make sure it doesn't!
While I was thinking about my post for the 21 Days of Gratitude, I kept coming back to teaching my children gratitude. And what better way to teach my children gratitude than my giving? But I don't mean giving things to them. I mean giving to others.
As I drove home from a social event tonight, I suddenly thought, "I wonder what would happen if I asked Sweet P every morning, 'How can we bless someone today?" How can we thank God for our blessings by blessing someone else? She might not get it at first, but after a few weeks (maybe even days), I think she might start asking me.
When we started Baby Bear Preschool this year we started with a word of the week. The first week was Share and the next week was Thankful. I put these together and we read a devotional that talked about being thankful for your food because many children don't have enough food to eat. That week we talked a lot about being thankful and thinking of ways we could show our gratitude by blessing others. I often say, "We can show God we are grateful for what He has given us by giving to others." We ended up taking food to a local food bank that month (and plan to do so monthly) and while I'm not sure Sweet P understood, it planted a seed.
I receive Samaritan's Purse Gift Catalog so I sat down with Sweet P and showed her the different items we could buy to help other children or families who don't have enough food, clothing or resources. She chose to donate milk and a blanket with her own piggy bank money, and again a seed was planted.
Each year our church does Operation Christmas Child. This is our 3rd year participating and I have fallen in love with this ministry. It's a ministry that even a toddler can take part in. Our church supplies the boxes and we do the filling. If you're not familiar with OCC, please click here. We only took one box home because I was taking the bulk of the stuff I'd saved all year just for this to my MOPS packing party (which was SUCH an amazing experience).
Last Friday our Family Fun night involved going to Wal-Mart to pick out a few more items to pack in our box. Sweet P decided on some pencils and pens, we picked up a few toiletries and bought undergarments and a pair of shoes. When we got home I realized we'd bought undergarments for a very young child and a pair of shoes for an older child. I thought about taking the shoes back to return them, but then decided we'd just pack another box. We talked with Sweet P about how OCC worked as we shopped and chose items. Because Sweet P is a girl, we chose a girl to pack for and she kept asking "What's that little girl's name?"
It was late when we returned from shopping so we fed the kids and put them to bed with promises to fill the box in the morning. It was one of the first things Sweet P wanted to do when she got up and she gathered all the items (along with the box), and took them to the living room. Distracted by a phone call, I didn't sit down right away, and when I came into the living room she had packed everything into the box. We did a little rearranging (that's when we realized we had enough to do another box) and she taped the label to the lid before marking an X next to the age range.
We prayed over the boxes (and I guess it got lengthy because she finally said, "Stop.") and I wondered how much she understood. Again, she asked me "What's that little girl's name?"
Sunday morning, we dropped off our boxes at church and the seed was planted. She asked me again sometime at the beginning of the week about the little girl's name and then I thought she'd somewhat forgotten OCC because she hadn't mentioned it in a few days. Until tonight.
When I got home from the social event, I relieved my sweet babysitter and went up to check on Sweet P since her light was still on. To my surprise she was still awake so I snuggled in next to her and asked her how the night went. She sat up and pointed to a pile in the chair next to her bed and said:
"I packed Christmas Child boxes with toys for Beary (her stuffed very loved bear) and Baby Roogie (Beary's baby brother who is still in their mama's tummy-according to Sweet P) because they don't have very much clothes. Baby Roogie only has just one outfit so I packed some of my clothes for him. And Beary only has just one onesie to wear."
My heart melted and I told her that I loved her sweet, kind heart. Then, I asked if I could see what was in the "boxes" (they were two little homemade zippered pillows sans stuffing that my Nana made). The first contained several items of her clothes and the other had headbands and hats in it. My heart bubbled over as I thought of her sitting in her room alone filling these bags full of items to give to others (pretend or otherwise). She was, of course, supposed to be sleeping, but we'll let it slide.
And the seed began to grow.
It's not too late to participate in Operation Christmas Child -- in fact, next week is collection week so you've got some time to get a box and get packin' (click to the link above to find out how to participate in your area). OCC is an amazing ministry for children around the world, but it's not the only way to show gratitude by giving. Serving or giving others doesn't have to be monetary either. Here are a few more ways to show gratitude for your own blessings by giving:
I'm sharing November 9th with the adorable mama♥miss so pop over to read her gratitude post today! So grateful for the Kids Blogger Network and the opportunity to be part of Inspired By Family's 21 Days of Gratitude.
In a world of negativity, it's a breath of fresh air to stop and count your blessings.
How can you bless someone today?
If there's one thing I fear, it's raising an ungrateful child. Probably because I was one. No really. It's embarrassing. And I'm praying history does not repeat itself and going to great lengths to make sure it doesn't!
When we started Baby Bear Preschool this year we started with a word of the week. The first week was Share and the next week was Thankful. I put these together and we read a devotional that talked about being thankful for your food because many children don't have enough food to eat. That week we talked a lot about being thankful and thinking of ways we could show our gratitude by blessing others. I often say, "We can show God we are grateful for what He has given us by giving to others." We ended up taking food to a local food bank that month (and plan to do so monthly) and while I'm not sure Sweet P understood, it planted a seed.
I receive Samaritan's Purse Gift Catalog so I sat down with Sweet P and showed her the different items we could buy to help other children or families who don't have enough food, clothing or resources. She chose to donate milk and a blanket with her own piggy bank money, and again a seed was planted.
We prayed over the boxes (and I guess it got lengthy because she finally said, "Stop.") and I wondered how much she understood. Again, she asked me "What's that little girl's name?"
Sunday morning, we dropped off our boxes at church and the seed was planted. She asked me again sometime at the beginning of the week about the little girl's name and then I thought she'd somewhat forgotten OCC because she hadn't mentioned it in a few days. Until tonight.
When I got home from the social event, I relieved my sweet babysitter and went up to check on Sweet P since her light was still on. To my surprise she was still awake so I snuggled in next to her and asked her how the night went. She sat up and pointed to a pile in the chair next to her bed and said:
"I packed Christmas Child boxes with toys for Beary (her stuffed very loved bear) and Baby Roogie (Beary's baby brother who is still in their mama's tummy-according to Sweet P) because they don't have very much clothes. Baby Roogie only has just one outfit so I packed some of my clothes for him. And Beary only has just one onesie to wear."
My heart melted and I told her that I loved her sweet, kind heart. Then, I asked if I could see what was in the "boxes" (they were two little homemade zippered pillows sans stuffing that my Nana made). The first contained several items of her clothes and the other had headbands and hats in it. My heart bubbled over as I thought of her sitting in her room alone filling these bags full of items to give to others (pretend or otherwise). She was, of course, supposed to be sleeping, but we'll let it slide.
And the seed began to grow.
It's not too late to participate in Operation Christmas Child -- in fact, next week is collection week so you've got some time to get a box and get packin' (click to the link above to find out how to participate in your area). OCC is an amazing ministry for children around the world, but it's not the only way to show gratitude by giving. Serving or giving others doesn't have to be monetary either. Here are a few more ways to show gratitude for your own blessings by giving:
- Visit a local nursing home as often as possible, especially during the holidays (we are doing this for the first time today)
- Participate in Toys for Tots
- Serve at a soup kitchen
- Take a meal to a friend
- Donate gently used games and/or puzzles to a local youth shelter
- Take food to a local food bank
- Volunteer at your local food bank
- Bake a pie, a cake or cookies for your neighbor (preferably one you don't know!)
- Participate in Meals for the Heartland (or something like it)
- Sponsor a child through Compassion International
- Send thank you notes to those who serve you (local fire station, mail carrier, librarian)
Want more ideas? Want to share yours? Check out #blog4cause (Little Hands can make a Big Difference), an idea created by the minds of Amy of TeachMama, Allison of No Time for Flashcards and Amanda at Not Just Cute. Read more about it, then link up how you're making a difference in the world.
I pray that by teaching my children to give, they'll learn to be grateful for and not take for granted our blessings.
I'm sharing November 9th with the adorable mama♥miss so pop over to read her gratitude post today! So grateful for the Kids Blogger Network and the opportunity to be part of Inspired By Family's 21 Days of Gratitude.
21 Days of Gratitude: Day 3 - My Sweet Girl
Oh Sweet P. My sweet girl. My sweet firstborn. I am so thankful for her and all that she is. She is independent, but loves her mama time. She adores her daddy and has finally started acknowledging the fact that she has a brother.
Have you joined the 21 Days of Gratitude Challenge hosted by Inspired by Family and many other fabulous bloggers? Join us and take time to count your blessings!
I wrote a post that has some of this in it (it's posting next week at some point), but it's appropriate for this post so I'm writing it again.
Sweet P was what we like to call a surprise. I don't like to say she was an accident because God definitely had a plan for us when He placed Sweet P in our lives. Quite honestly, I cannot imagine what our lives would have become had I not become pregnant with her our first few months in Iowa.
She is the first born grandchild on both sides and is SO loved. I pray that she feels that love and knows how important she is to so many people in her life. While she's a typical 3 year old (that girl is a sassafrass!), she is also loving, cautious, curious, thoughtful, compassionate and vibrant.
Her love for Jesus makes my heart soar and my sweet girl has such a passion for music. You can find her dancing, singing, humming or making up songs most of the day (usually at the top of her lungs while her brother is napping).
Her love for Jesus makes my heart soar and my sweet girl has such a passion for music. You can find her dancing, singing, humming or making up songs most of the day (usually at the top of her lungs while her brother is napping).
My dear Sweet P. She's our blue eyed babe (who I'm still in awe of!) and such a joy in our lives. And we have only God to thank for the blessing that she is. We love you sweet girl.
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
~Psalm 139:13-14
Baby Bear Preschool: Letter T
Time to get caught up with Baby Bear Preschool!
First off: Letter T! We did two weeks of Letter T because I found/came up with so many great tree activities! Plus the tree theme fit perfectly into autumn/fall, too!
You'll notice that in most pictures Sweet P is in her fairy costume or her jammies, that's one of her favorite parts of homeschool preschool - getting to wear costumes and jammies!
Verse: Thank the Lord for all the glorious things He does. Psalm 105:1
Song: We didn't really have a song for Letter T, but danced to all sorts of music!
, Thou Shalt Not Steal in My ABC Bible Verses: Hiding God's Word in Little Hearts
, and Timothy's story in A Child's First Bible
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Apple Tree Number Match: Last year a garage sale down the street was selling preschool materials that the seller had made. I snatched up a few gems, including these numbered trees. They actually go with a set of dogs with dots on them, but I left the dogs in the envelope and we used the trees with red pompoms (apples!). Sweet P doesn't love to count so she tends to get tired of these types of activities quickly. I've learned to do high numbers first so that she gets 9 & 10 out of the way and has 2 & 1 last. You'll see in the top blog picture that she started with tweezers. She got rid of this pretty quickly and used her fingers instead. She can use tweezers, she just knows fingers are faster!
After she'd put all the apples on the trees, I moved them into a line on the floor. She and Beary grabbed baskets and then went to the apple orchard and picked apples! This was by far her favorite part.
Contact Paper Tree: We went on several leaf hunts during our T week and after each walk, I laminated the leaves we picked up until we had several of each. I explained the activity, gave Sweet P the materials and she set to work. She said, "Some of the leaves are falling off the tree." We talked a lot about falling leaves so any time we talk about them she says, "Oh is it fall?"
Sprout examined the laminated leaves too! He loved the way they felt and since they were laminated it didn't matter if he tried to taste them (which he did, of course!).
Felt Apple Tree Sort: I made this felt game last year to go with Letter A, but it fit in great with our tree theme. She did it several times, stacking up all of the capital letters and then moving on to lowercase.
Writing in the Sand: This was the first time we've done sand tracing and she had a ball! She did capital T and lowercase over and over, and then just drew in the sand.
Letter T resist painting: Again, our first time to resist paint and it was a huge hit! Sweet P painted all over the page and then we hung it up to dry. We both thought it was pretty cool when she peeled off the tape later and the white T showed up! The finished picture is in the collage at the top of the post.
Cork painting! So fun! Inspired by The Picky Apple. I traced her hand on a brown piece of construction paper, cut it out and she glued it to a piece of white paper. I only had 1 cork, so she used the same one over and over. It fit perfectly into the paint dish and she had a blast! She also said she was making several leaves falling off the tree in this picture. I forgot to take a pic of the finished product and am too lazy to go find it to do it now, but you get the picture!
Eraser Stamping TP Tree: (See the collage at the top of the post for a pic of the finished craft.) I pinned this verrrry early in my pinning days. After cork painting, I grabbed a pencil and she made apples all over the tree. I cut slits in the TP roll and helped her fit the top of the tree into it. Love how it turned out!
Leaf Soup: After a nature walk, she took all the leaves we weren't using for our contact paper tree and made leaf soup! I gave her a cup full of water and she went to down mixing and pouring.
Sorting Leaves by Color & Shape: These leaves are from the $ Tree and come in 4 colors. She sorted them into the clear plastic container by color and then again by shape.
Coffee Filter Trees: Click link for details.
'
We went on a walk to a playground when Gammie visited and came home will sorts of nature pieces. Actually, as she picked up pieces she said "This can be the head." and a Leaf Girl was born. I guess it's more of a leaf monster!
Apple Seed Dice Game: These foam apples are from Target's $ Spot. Sweet P's tray had the apples, a box of raisins (seeds) and dice. She'd roll the dice (we started with 1) and then add the appropriate number of raisins. This lasted awhile, until she decided to eat the seeds!
Yarn Tree: Inspired by 3 Dinosaurs using a Letter T worksheet from Confessions of a Homeschooler. After coloring the trunk, she went to town with 3 colors of yarn. I couldn't get it cut fast enough!
Acorn Lady: Gammie found these pieces of acorn on our nature walk and we glued them together to make a lady! Sweet P drew on the face with a marker. Too funny!
Other activities:
Center Grove Orchard: We went to the orchard TWICE during our letter T weeks and it's always a blast!
Food Bank: To go along with being thankful this week, we thanked God for our abundance of food and took food to a local food bank. We also dropped off several toys the kids no longer play with at the Salvation Army. We talked a lot about giving during this week as well.
Words of a Preschooler: Auntie Rosita volunteers at a food bank twice a week so she talked to Sweet P via Skype about working there and what she does. Well after we took food to the food bank, I told her about a girl we saw loading a truck and said, "See she's volunteering like RoRo does." Sweet P replied, "Yes, RoRo goes to the food bank because she doesn't have enough food to eat." Whoops.
Linking up to Tot School & Montessori Monday
Linking up to these Linky Parties
Coffee Filter Fall Trees
Ummm, let's just say we've got 12 fall trees hanging up around the house! I'd say she enjoyed it! Each time I asked, "Are you done or do you want to do more?" She'd say, "Do more!" So we did it until she was done.
By the way, don't look out the window. Then you'll see that it doesn't quite look like fall and we've still got green leaves attached to trees. Oh well! It may not look like fall outside, but it does inside!
coffee filters
water mixed with red, yellow and orange food coloring
medicine dropper
brown construction paper
glue stick
Super simple and you probably have everything you need at home!
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3 Homemade Granola Recipes
Here are 3 tried and true recipes to get you started.
Make it. I promise you won't regret and if you have kiddos, I promise they'll ask for more. Mix it with soy milk, cow's milk, coconut milk (carton, not canned!), almond milk, rice milk, yogurt and if you're up for a treat, ice cream! And the add-ins are endless (raisins, craisins, almonds, walnuts, pecans, etc.).
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