No Bake Cookies

Today was my boys' last day of school.  To celebrate we have been eating these.

Lots and lots of these.

Summer Fun List

Today my boys started their last week of school before Summer break, and I realized that I had better get my summer fun list together pronto. We won't be doing these in any particular order, but I hope to get to all of them.  Here is what I have so far . . .

1.  Indoor Picnic
2. Outdoor Picnic
3. Make Dinosaur fossils
4. Have a boy friendly tea party
5. Leaf Rubbings

6.  Go fishing!.  Arizona has a free fishing day in June and we always take advantage of it.

7.  Sharpie Plate Art
8.  Run through the sprinklers
9.  Slip and Slide
10.Water Balloon Target Practice
11.  European Breakfast
12.  Bubble Painting
13.  Ice Cream Sandwiches on a stick

14.  Simon Says Art - maybe with sidewalk chalk outside.

15.  Silk Screen T-shirts

16.  Make and play with play dough

17.  Make, play with, and eat peanut butter play dough.

 

18.  Giant Bubbles
19.  Homemade Ice Cream
20.  Diet Coke and Mentos explosion
21.  Make necklaces for movie night
22.  Make milk carton watering cans
23.  Create pieces of art, then set them up for display and have an art show - complete with refreshments.
24.  Celebrate some unusual holidays.
25.  Elephant Toothpaste science experiment.
26.  Make Firecracker Sugar Cookies.
27.  Make Chip Bag Shrinkies.
28.  Exploding Bags with baking soda and vinegar.
29.  Have a backwards day.  Start the day with dessert, end with breakfast.  Wear clothes backwards.  Reverse your routine where possible (i.e. stories in the morning, chores in the evening.)
30.  Ivory Soap Explosion

I will add to this list as I think of, or find more things to do.  I will also try to blog about what we are doing and share the fun!  Here is hoping for a fabulous and fun Summer!

Mother's Day Flowers

This is what my little guys (and my awesome husband) did for me for Mother's Day.

It's actually starting to feel like Spring around here.  Thanks guys, I love them!!

Round and Round

My youngest two boys love, love, love running and pushing their big Mega Blocks dump trucks in a circle around the coffee table and sofa in my living room.  (In truth - all of my boys have loved this activity when they were little.)  I usually have a "track" in the carpet where you can see they have pushed these trucks over and over.

 It can get pretty loud with all of the laughing and the wheels running against the floor when they hit the hardwood, but amazingly, the loudness of this particular activity never bothers me.  In fact it always makes me smile and provides some of the happiest moments of my day, along with some fun memories of their big brothers doing the same thing. 

Dots and Toothpicks Construction

I was saving this fun little activity using Dots and toothpicks to construct all sorts of interesting things until summer - - but Friday, my boys were out of school for an unused snow day and I got desperate.  I ran to Dollar Tree for a few packages of Dots and some toothpicks and put the boys to work.

This kept them busy for more than an hour.  They constructed, deconstructed, and constructed again.  When I asked them if they wanted to do this activity again during summer break, I got a big, wholehearted Y-E-S!!

 

 

I think my son summed up this activity best when he called it "yummy fun!"

**I have also seen this activity done using mini marshmallows in place of the Dots.  It would probably work just as well and it would be even cheaper.

Teacher Gifts

Yesterday, I realized that today was the last day of preschool.  I had to come up with a couple of teacher gifts and fast.  Luckily I had picked up a few things from Pick Your Plum a couple of months ago and I was able to make up some cute little post-it note gifts with minimal effort.  The little post-it notebooks just needed to be dressed up with a little washi tape and then I tied on those cute matching pens and a tag with some jute twine.  While I was at it, I made the teacher gifts for my older boys teachers as well.  It is so nice to have them done and I think they are pretty cute!! 

 

**As an added plus - my husband, the principal and former teacher - approves of these useful little teacher gifts.