Volcano

Do you see it?

Maise is all about volcano’s. She saw them on Little Einstein’s and wanted to know more about them. We went online and looked up all kinds of volcano clips. She is really fond of the ones showing lava going into the ocean. When she showed me this picture I just could not believe it. I think it is awesome. The best part was she was able to tell me what she drew and what was happening in the picture. Check it out:

She is amazing! I mean really how cool?

The end of the clip as she details daddy's shoes melting was from our Hawaii video. I was so excited to actually show someone...it has been all boxed up for some time. Wow, come to think of it that video was from 10 years ago. Our 25th birthday gift to ourselves! That means I am going to be 35 this year! How is that for some perspective? Nothing like 10 year measureable scales of life! I think the last 10 are pretty noteworthy!

Q=Tip Painting

Wow what an awesome way to paint and keep it clean. The whole point of this project is to dot your masterpiece with a tiny bit of paint and a q-tip. We originally got the idea from Pinterest but tweeked and added as we saw fit! This was a great little project after dinner and before the tub.

We could have used a finger paint or thinker paint but this worked fine for us!

Notice the rubber cupcake holders?

We love these to use for art projects and for syrup or other gooey substances!

Testing colors.

Ok I had to take a stab at the one I saw on Pinterest.

Now this is when it got interesting...look at what she painted!

Is that a dancing couple? Sure looks like people to me!

Ok down below take a closer look.

That is totally people...and when I asked Maise she told me,

"It's a ribbon"!

We had fun...In the picture above we decided to mix q-tip painting and learning letters!

This was cool she did not even know she was learning. I am so sneaky!

...art = love!

Have a great week!

Science is for the Birds! and the little squirrels to!

Joe will be so happy when he finds out that I actually put all those toilet paper rolls I have been saving to good use. We finally got out to do our big science experiment. The scientific question the ladies and I were out to answer was - What kind of bird feeder will our local birds prefer. We constructed three different bird feeders from recycled products around the house and then hung them from the bushes out our back window where we like to watch the birds.

The 3 feeders we decided to construct came from three separate sources. We used Pinterest, a mom friend of mine Susan (S.M.) and an old one from my old girl scout days. I have wanted to do this with the girls for a while and so glad we finally had the opportunity!

At first I saw the pinterest one and liked and saved it for an activity to do with the girls. Then I saw that Susan did something similar and added that to the grand plan along with the one I remember doing as a kid. So then since I wanted to do all three I had to add the experimental twist just for fun.

The girls had fun building them, pouring the water and seeds, and hanging them up. Results from day one proved interesting...the first birdfeeder to be emptied was the Cheerio/pipe cleaner one I stole from Susans brain. The interesting part was that it was gone in about a half hour and was consumed by a squirrel. Always have to take precautions for the unknown...see learning about the experimental process early!

What the squirrels left us!

Unfortunately the rain came that night and kind of washed out our work but there are still some seeds left. Think we will try again when the weather decides to stay dry for more than a day.

But we still had a blast! Check it out:

Bird feeder 1- Needed pipe cleaner and Cheerios. Great for motor skills! Add Cheerios to wire and twist closed. Then place on tree and wait for squirrels.

Bird feeder 2- Need a cup of sorts and string. I adapted this one from Pinterest but instead of using a tuna can I used plastic from disposable cupcake tins. The top was for a 6 pack of cupcakes and I cut it in threes attaching string to the sides. Cutting it in threes allowed us to have water and food for the birds.

Bird feeder 3 - Needed toilet paper roll, creamy peanut butter, and a knife/spoon. This one I did in girl scouts. Smooth peanut butter over tub and allow kids to roll toilet paper roll in seeds to cover. String a ribbon in the hole and hang.

What have we been up to you ask?

We experienced our 1st school lotto. We had lucky # 7 and actually got the location and schedule we wanted. Woo Hoo! It was a mind-blowing experience. Not only was I registering my 1st born (yeah I know dramatic) for school for the 1st time. I was also competing for a spot. Very Waiting For Superman! Well not that hard but still. I had to get a number a week ahead of time and gather the proper paperwork and physical and return a week later to have numbers drawn. You registered in the order you were called. It was more really for time slot but was a bit nerve racking as I sat not having my number called. But alas it was called and my park and time were still available. I also registered the girls for a music class and Maise for gymnastics in hope of maybe meeting some of her classmates early.

We have been doing a lot of arts and crafts. We have lots of purple paint to get through. Joe argues that the following picture on the right is not a foot but I swear it is. Right after that foot print went haywire I got a print of the same foot on my favorite pair of jeans. I do believe that was the 1st Pinerest injury ever!

And some more Pinterest fun...

Nessa is really good at coloring.
She is getting in to it way faster than Maise did.
Maybe we have an artist on our hands!

Below the girls create butterflies...

This one we call the Mrs. Lippy!
Stolen from Billy Madison and not Pinterest.
Thank you MRS. LIPPY!

Cleaning out the storage!
Look what we found!
Some of mommy's old toys.
My Precious!

This is a Target activity.
From the dollar section; they are paint an animal pots with grass seeds.
We will revisit when we see green.
So far Maise's looks pretty good but mine not so much...Still waiting on my 1st sprouts.

Oh and I got a tattoo!

And of course we have been hitting the gym.
Got to look good for summer.
DISCLAIMER: No children were hurt in the taking of this photo.
Machine was unplugged and the room was full of adults. 1:1 ratio!

Ok now your caught up...see ya after Maise's Party!

Painting Snow

We tried a new activity we found on Pinterest this weekend and it turned out to be a lot of fun. We painted snow and made our winter wonderland a color wonderland! All you need for this activity is some food coloring, water and a squirt bottle. Our first attempt was not very bright so for our second attempt we added a little extra food coloring and had a much better result.

Have a great week!