Guests at a Cool Homeschool

We are having some work done in our house this week, so I took my cousin up on her offer to join her and her children at their family farm. She is homeschooling her Kindergartner, 4 year old, and almost-2 year old while they wait to settle into a new home in a new city. This amazing mom has spent the past month in a 1-room farmhouse and has been cooking up fabulous lesson plans for her kids every day. Since she hasn't had much of a break in the past month, I offered to plan today's lesson.



Our theme was Post Office. We read a few library books about mail and post offices, including a Gail Gibbons book. If you haven't checked out her informative non-fiction children's books - do so! Not that my children are much interested in sitting in a circle to read when there are new (to them) toys all around and 300 acres of farmland to explore. But, we got through the books and our cousins probably learned something. :)


Next up, each kid created a mailbox out of a shoebox while we talked about the things some of us learned in the books. Then, it was time to head outside for play time, where we quizzed the kids on their addresses as the romped around in the fresh air. They also had time to check the farm's mail box and write, address, and stamp letters to each other.


After lunch, we headed out for our field trip...to the Post Office, of course! The kids proudly found the correct slot for their letters and then the incredibly nice PostMaster took as back for a tour. We found our letters in their bins and then checked out how the post office runs behind the scenes. The kids even got to check out a mail truck, pick a piece of candy, and received a coloring book. Who knew the post office was so small-child friendly!

Bedtime Buddies

We love bedtime around here. Our days are typically jam-packed with adventures, pre-school, or just general havoc-wrecking around town. At the end of most days, none of our heads have touched a pillow and we are tired.

So, bedtime is the one time of day that I get the chance to snuggle my two wild boys. No one is yelling or running or singing at the top of his lungs. No one is fighting or whining or making a collosal mess. It is peace. It is bliss.

After they've bathed, brushed their teeth and chosen their pajamas, each boy chooses two books from our collection. On my nights to put the boys to bed, we all three snuggle in one of their twin beds and read. Sometimes, it takes a half hour to get through our small stack of books. They lay their little heads on my shoulders and fight to keep their eyes open. That short period of time before they drift off to sleep can redeem even the most trying day.

This post is dedicated to Gramps, who made our bedtime routine even more special by making the buddies these beautiful bookcases. We love you, Gramps!

T-Ball Grandparents

Grandma and Grandpa drove down for a quick trip to watch the buddies play t-ball. They were here less than 24 hours, but we packed loads of fun into those hours.

Super Coach and four of the teammates.

Ace, who refused to wear the t-ball cleats that we bought him.

Ben, who refused to wear the t-ball pants.

Between the two of them, we have one completely outfitted t-ball player.

Polo at the Vineyard

When a friend of mine scored a free set of tickets to a charity polo match, we jumped at the chance to join them. My friend advised that Texas polo is not as hoity-toity as polo elsewhere, so we "dressed up" in polos and shorts for the boys and a cotton dress and a big floppy staw hat for me. Afterall, anyone who's seen Pretty Woman knows that one should wear a big straw hat to a polo match.



It was fun! The boys enjoyed watching the match for a few brief moments. They certainly enjoyed the horses and cheered for a few goals. Mostly, they just enjoyed horsing around with another set of twin boys and grazing on the free buffett in the VIP section.

The event benefitted the R.O.C.K., Ride On Center for Kids, a non profit provider of therapeutic horseback riding and Hippotherapy for individuals with cognitive and physical challenges. It was great to see the community rally around a great cause.



I'm sad to report that we left before the crazy hat contest and the stomping of the divets, but the buddies and their friends had lasted as long as they could last. Next time! View the rest of our pictures here.

Best. Summer. Ever.

Here's a little recap of what we are calling the best. summer. ever. It is a bit long, so grab a snack or a cocktail (or both), turn the volume up, and pull up a chair. Enjoy!

The Cathedral of Junk

This morning, we did our part to "keep Austin weird" and met our cousins at the Cathedral of Junk. It is difficult to describe the cathedral. Basically, a guy started building it in his backyard over 20 years ago and it has evolved into an offbeat landmark of sorts.




It was truly a wonderland for the buddies and their cousins. They ran up and down the many steps and ladders, exploring all the nooks, crannies, and levels of the surprisingly sturdy structure. Aside from Ben getting "lost" in the garbage for several minutes, we all had a great time! Our two sets of brothers even teamed up for a fun game of hide and seek.




After we'd seen enough, we headed to Zilker for a picnic lunch, some time on the playscape, and a train ride. It was a good day!

Our Step Back in Time

Imagine Austin as a small town, with just a few thousand residents... Horses and buggies are the primary form of transportation... Most of Texas is still untamed, unsettled frontier prairie... Texas as a state is only 50 years old... Many families still live in log cabins...


Welcome to Pioneer Farm! The buddies and I enjoyed free admission this afternoon, as a part of Austin's Museum Day. Pioneer Farm has been on our list of places to visit since we moved here and Museum Day is the day when they bring out all their volunteers dressed in period costume, add some live music, weaving demonstrations, fire-starting demonstrations, and more!



We enjoyed touring the old homes. Ben peered into the family room in one of the larger rooms and declared, "They don't have a tv in here!" No Ben, they didn't have tv's in the 1800's. Ace checked out the kitchen and said, "But where is the refrigerator?!" And so we explored the smoke house out back where the family stored their cured meats.




We checked out old farm equipment and got eye to eye with some animals. We practiced our wood-chopping skills with real axes. We explored a few tee-pee replicas, assembled on a site where Tonkawa Indians, a nomadic tribe, camped seasonally. We bought penny candy at the General Store and sat on the porch with our treats and listened to a band play songs from the 17oo's. "Dixie" and "Yankee Doodle" were among the favorites we recognized but we also enjoyed a peppy song about a woman trying to convince her man not to go off to war. When we finished our candy, the buddies danced along to the music, much to the delight of the band.



Our most eye-opening experience occcured when we explored a German Immigrant homestead - a one-room house about the size of my bathroom. The volunteer asked the buddies how many people they thought once lived there. Their response: "None!" Actual answer: 15. Yeesh! We are glad to live in the 21st century.

Check out the rest of our pictures here.

This is all starting to be a little too familiar...

I'm sad to report that we are becoming regulars at Dell Children's ER. I know exactly where to find the good parking, don't have to think twice about directions as I carry one of my wheezing boys up to registration, know where all the bathrooms are, and know where to find the person with the toy stash when my child starts climbing the walls at the end of a long visit. When a nurse that we've had on at least two other visits recognized us, I didn't think much of it. Then, the nice respiratory therapist visited our room and remembered us as well. And, then the pediatrician. So, that's it, I guess. We are regulars.

But, at least it is a nice place where our boys receive excellent care.


Ace looks like a completely different kid in this picture than he did when we arrived, just a few hours earlier. He is patched up and on the mend and we're just in for a few lazy days at home. A big pot of chicken and dumplings is simmering on the stove and all will be well in a few days.

Fred the Cat

Just in case anyone was worried, the buddies' preschool mascot, Fred the cat, was found today. It seems he was hiding under a desk because he was scared. It was much too noisy for him on the first day of school. :)

First Day of School

This morning was bittersweet for us. While the boys are excited to return to their beloved preschool two mornings a week and I am excited to have those two mornings a week to catch up on long-neglected chores and errands, we are also really sad that summer is over. Because this has been the best. summer. ever. We will miss our morning excursions to the pool and "Adventure Mondays" and our trips to the lake and our annual two-week vacation to Pennsylvania, and all the extra play dates with friends that we just don't see often enough during the school year.

But, today was the day that the buddies donned their new shoes, strapped on their backpacks, and carried their lunchboxes into their last year of preschool.

If you asked them about their first day, you'd likely hear that they are "the cats and not the skunks". And that they are in "Ms. Klink's class and not Ms. Heather's". And that "Claire is in their class but not Cooper and not Wyatt". And that "Fred the cat got lost because sometimes cats run away from home". Luckily that last one was explained to me in a note home from Ms. Klink. It seems the class mascot got lost and the children searched for him all over campus. They passed out posters with Fred's photo and asked, "Have you seen my cat?" to everyone they encountered. According to both boys, Fred was never found so perhaps the class will find him on their next school day. Or perhaps my two wild boys weren't paying attention when Fred was found. Either scenario seems entirely plausible.

Labor Day at Texoma

We are home from another long weekend with Grandma and Grandpa at their awesome lakefront home. We decided to head up early and took in four pretty full days of fun.

We spent every day either on the beach or out on the boat. Here's a rare moment when we captured both buddies sitting:


The buddies also experienced a few more firsts on the trip. They went camping! They helped Grandpa nail in the stakes and then happily slept in it all night long with Grandma. Grandpa didn't want to miss out on any of the fun but gave up after an hour of trying to sleep amongst the giggles and horse-playing. Steve and I just stayed in the house the whole time.

Another first: water skiing! We don't have actual pictures of the skiing because we needed two adults in the water, one adult holding the rope that attaches to the wee-person skis, and another adult to drive the boat. But, they both did it! Neither was able to stand but glided along behind the boat in a squat position. Ace wasn't so sure about it.

Ben beamed from ear to ear and went back for more.


There was also a lot of this going on :


And then, of course, the Fourth Annual Festicle.

Good times. Check out the rest of our pictures here.

Up!

The buddies went to their first movie in a theater today! And loved it! Until the scary part at the end, when both boys dove into our laps, cried real tears, and repeated over and over and over, "I just want to go home!". These kids ride roller coasters that make my stomach lurch and beg for more, but apparently a pack of barking dogs and a 75 year old bad guy are just too much for them.

But it was fun, minus the crying and screaming at the end. Ben even says he wants to go to a movie ("that's not scary") again. Ace doesn't, but reminded us that he'd like to go back to "the place with all the rides" again.

Pudding Pops

When I was a little girl, my brother, sister, and I used to spend one or two weeks each summer with our grandparents. I have lots of great memories from those weeks but the other day, when I saw this, I was reminded of how Granny always kept a package of pudding pops in the freezer during our vacations. They were a special treat that we rarely had at home and we looked forward to them every summer. So, when I came across the recipe, I knew the buddies and I just had to make them. It was simple and fun and my two little chefs really did most of the work themselves. The hardest part was waiting 5 hours for them to freeze.

We even sneaked in a few math lessons in the process, which I always like to do when we cook together. Examples:

We need two cups of milk. Ace poured one cup. How many more do we need?

Who can count out 6 cookies? Now, give half to your brother.

We need to fill 8 cups with the pudding mixture. How many can Ben fill and how many can Ace fill?





They tasted great! The buddies can't wait to make them again. We just wish we could ship some up to Oklahoma to the great grands!

Dutch Wonderland

Granddad treated us to a day of fun at Dutch Wonderland, a cool amusement park designed for kids age 8 and younger. Our two tall 4-year olds were the perfect age for this place! Ben was a hair shy of the 42" requirement for many of the cool rides, like kingdom coaster and space shuttle, but he just stood on his tip-toes and grinned at the friendly attendants as he passed under the measuring stick. There was nothing our boys couldn't ride.


And ride, they did! We arrived shortly after opening and nearly closed the place down. We rode coasters and log flumes and trains and a myriad of stomach-churning, spinning rides. Amazingly, the buddies weren't scared of any of them. Bumper cars were a huge hit - Ben laughed and laughed as he and Lindsay repeatedly smashed into Ace's and my car. Granddad even found a water slide for them that they rode at the end of the day, since we had one change of clothes. Steve and I were grateful to Lindsay for riding with them!


We even took in a couple of shows. Thomas the Tank Engine was there with two singing engineers. We also saw a dive show, which was really pretty impressive.

After a full day of fun, and as we were walking to our car, Ace said, "Hey Mom! Can we come back to this place with all the rides tomorrow?" Sadly, the answer was no, as we had a plane to catch the next day.

Check out the rest of our pictures here.

Train Town, USA

During our vacation, we made a second trip to Strasburg, a cool little town packed with fun places for train-loving kids. During our first trip, we took a ride on the famous Strasburg Rail Road. This time, we decided to check out the National Toy Train Museum. It was awesome.



The place was filled with toy trains from the 1800's to the present. We checked out walls and walls of antique toy trains but the real highlight were the many large train layouts. They were the best we've ever seen, and we've seen quite a few. The layouts were even set up so that visitors could operate them. The buddies started train after train and also enjoyed turning the many accessories - like traffic signals, spotlights, and train whistles - on and off. We could have stayed all day but decided to move on after 2 1/2 hours.




Afterwards, we took the buddies for a special lunch inside a real train at the Red Caboose Restaurant. The food was marginal but we just couldn't beat sitting in an antique dining car. We even had a view of the Strasburg Rail Road and watched a few of the excursions depart. We also walked the grounds of the Red Caboose Motel, where guests slumber in actual antique train cars.






Next year, we'll check out the Choo Choo Barn or maybe the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. We could visit this little town yearly and not run out of places the buddies want to see.

Check out the rest of our train pictures here.

Swimming!

Check out Ace, swimming! Thanks to Aunt Julie and Uncle Henry for inviting us over for steaks, beers, and swimming!

More Fun with Me Mom!

After our tubing adventure, our visit with Me Mom continued to be lots of fun. Steve and his sisters threw a retirement party for her. It was great to catch up with friends and family and meet some new people too. Here is Me Mom with her three grandbabies after the party:

Guess what she plans to do with her free time during retirement? If she gets her way, she'll be spending as much time as possible with these three.

We also got to attend a lovely (and fun!) wedding for a childhood friend of Steve's.

I discovered the Mummers and feel a little slighted that I've been hanging out with Philadelphians for 10 years now and haven't been introduced to them before. What could be more fun than dancing around with a bunch of men in crazy costumes while waving little umbrella's overhead? Thanks to Aunt Kate and Uncle Wags for watching the buddies that night (and for introducing them to water ice!).

Check out the rest of our wedding pictures here.

Steve and I even got to take a little mini-vaca while Me Mom watched the boys overnight. We headed out to Jim Thorpe, PA, a sleepy little town just at the foot of the Poconos. We strolled the beautiful and historic main street, ate leisurely meals without interruption, went for a long hike and dipped our feet in the river, drank a few beers in a local pub, and then went to bed early and slept late. It was wonderful!

More Jim Thorpe pictures here.

Our visit also included lots of fun little excursions...like trips to the swimming pool and the park, a trip to Vincents for a cheesesteak, and a late night trip for custard and ice cream.

Tubing the Delaware River

Me Mom treated us to a fun tubing adventure on our first full day of our vacation. The five of us headed out to the Delaware River for a fun day in the sun. Ben enjoyed the short bus ride to the launch point, but quickly became skittish when he glimpsed the wide, vast river and realized that we wanted him to float in a wee-little tube. He shouted and scratched his way into my lap and insisted it was "too scary" on his own.




At the half-way point, we stopped for lunch with the Famous Hot Dog Man. After standing in a 45 minute line for the (so-called) famous hot dogs, we scarfed our meals and discovered that one of our tubes (a two seater) had been hi-jacked. So, there we were, on an island, in the middle of the Delaware River, with five people and only three tubes. We did what anyone else would do and stole someone else's tubes as well as some rope (and got caught) and continued our journey.


Ben still insisted on sitting in my lap for the second leg of the journey. Then, Ace decided he was scared too and joined us. The added weight was forcing me into a bit of a crunch position, and while I appreciate abdominal exercises, I wasn't thrilled with the idea of doing another hour and a half on the river like this. So, I offered up ice cream to any boy that was willing to ride in his own tube for the rest of the adventure. It's amazing how ice cream can diminish a wee person's fear. They both scattered to their own seats and low and behold...they realized it was fun!

We spent the second leg of the trip relaxing and laughing and taking in the scenery and just enjoying one another's company. And then, Ace fell asleep, in his tube, snoring loudly. It was an awesome adventure. Check out the rest of our pictures here.

Teddy Bear Picnic - Take 1!

A few days ago, Ben had the brilliant idea to host a Teddy Bear Picnic for our playgroup friends. We sent out the invitations, purchased and made foods that teddy bears enjoy (quesadillas, grapes, and teddy grahams), prepped our crafts, downloaded teddy themed music to my ipod, and threw down our picnic blanket in the middle of the living room.

And then Ben awoke with a fever and Ace woke up with a terrible cough. Boo!

So, I called our little friends and canceled the event, promising to reschedule for a later date, when our cooties aren't quite so fresh. But, since Mooberry and Thunder were already excited about their party, we just couldn't let them down.





Mooberry and Thunder had a wonderful time. Their people did too.

Hamilton Pool Preserve

Our summer tradition of "Adventure Mondays" continued yesterday. We enjoyed a great day at Hamilton Pool Preserve, a unique Austin swimming hole. The natural pool is surrounded by a collapsed grotto and canyon and a 50 foot waterfall trickles down from the Pedernales River. The entire property is truly breathtaking.




We met a few friends (4 moms and 10 children) and took part in all that the preserve offers: swimming, hiking, and picnicking. The buddies wanted to hike the trail around the canyon several times, and so we did. Add that to the half mile round trip hike from the parking lot to the pool (done twice because of a necessary trip back to the restrooms) and we probably hiked 2 miles altogether.

View the rest of our pictures here.