ALLOWance

Allowance! Do you remember your first allowance? I do, it was $2.00 a month and I thought I was rich! There are as many approaches to allowance as their are parents. My thought is this: I buy books for my children to learn how to read, pay for tutoring, VBS and other activities to help them grow into responsible people. I give them allowance to ALLOW them to learn how to make responsible financial decisions. 

In our home allowance is not tied to family chores, at least not directly. Children can earn more by doing extra jobs. They can also loose money if I have to hire a sibling to do their chore, paying the sibling out of their allowance. I start giving allowance in first grade, when they start learning about money.  My primary aged children save their money for wanted toys, or trinkets at the store. My secondary children start to receive more but in return they are responsible to use this money to balance out their leisure activities such as going to the movies, lunch with friends and all those importance teenage venues.  

Allowance teaches many important lessons when the cost is relatively small. Providing my children an allowance also saves me from being nickel and dimed to death emotionally and financially when we go to the store or some big want bites them.  

How can I afford it? How can I afford not too? 

~  DeAnn

Dinner, A Fly, Spider and Beetle!

I  brought home a Venus Fly Trap plant, to show the kids. It has been a lot of fun. We did some quick research and then went on a bug hunt to feed our new "pet".   The kids are fascinated! My favorite quote of the day, "I'm glad God made the plant eat bugs not humans!"  Me too.

Flashlight and fly swatter we are armed and ready!

Here buggy, buggy!

Be careful what you wish for...he's a little too big!



Dinner tonight for our new friend was a fly, spider and a beetle for desert!
Yum!

~DeAnn



Just Add Water

One of our spring traditions is to get a new slip and slide and a "baby" pool. Its warm enough by the thermometer to swim, but nearly so by the one in the pool, unless of course you are a member of the polar bear club.

Just add water, a few otter pops and the afternoon is filled with laughter, sunshine and fun! My favorite sounds of spring.

Priceless!

~ DeAnn

Egg Carton Good For More then Just Eggs

I love this idea and I wish I could say it was mine, but I saw this one at school. It makes cleaning up a breeze and keeps squabbles down regarding the paint. Simple and Practical!!

~ DeAnn

Out of the Donation Bin Back in the Closet

This weekend we cleaned out closets and traded winter for summer clothes. In the process we made a donation pile, but since learning to sew was on my New Years to do list. I took a boring white shirt and a stretched out dress and redesigned it for Sadie.  The goal is for the outside trim to show more, so yes we sewed with the seam on the outside~ on purpose :)

Sadie even learned to sew a bit, she did a great straight line.

~ DeAnn  

"It Works"

I told the girls they had to wear shoes to ride bikes, scooters......

"Mommy, it works"  I guess it does :)

Have a great day!  ~ DeAnn

Our Night Out

We enjoyed the light of the full moon, laughter and fun with a simple family bonn fire in the front yard. Its nights like this one I hope they look back on and smile.

This was followed by their sleeping in a classic fort made out of sheets and dining room table and chairs!

A wonderful way to end our spring break!
~ DeAnn

Salt Dough

The girls and I made classic salt dough clay. In keeping with our Sonoran Desert theme of study, they created their own rattle artistic snakes. With the extra they made pinch pots.

Any guesses to what the big flat one is?

Salt Dough Clay

4 cups flour

1 cup salt

1 1/2 cups water  ( I had to add extra water)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

food coloring

1 egg beaten

Mix all but the egg. Brush the clay art with the beaten egg then bake at 300 for 1 hour. Separate the dough and then mix different colors of food coloring with each if desired. After cooled shellac.

The kids loved making it and creating with the salt dough. The egg turned the snakes a great golden brown.

Get your hands dirty and have fun! 

~ DeAnn

Gooey Goop

New to me is the gooey goop cornstarch and water experiment. It turns from a solid to a liquid. To quote the kids "This is AMAZING"

The recipe I found:  1/2 cup Water
2 cups cornstarch
food coloring-optional
* I did end up adding more water, to this recipe.
Table protection

Doing this again, I'd do it outside.

Sonoran Desert

The girls are in the beginning phases of studying the Sonoran Desert. Being that we call the desert home, I decided to take the girls on a hike/walk to take pictures of the desert plants.  The walk was beautiful with the desert in full bloom.  We are making two books with our pictures. Sadie is doing a nonfiction on cactus and Trinity opted to do a story book with her pink snake as the star. Allowing them to take their own pictures added to their fun. 

Sadie and I had fun researching to identify cactus and learn facts to add to her book.  I think I learned just as much as she did! I'm thinking tomorrow we might have to try Prickly Pear jelly and make a cactus garden.

The cover

Sample page..this one is her favorite.

~ DeAnn

Educationally Disturbing: Body Worlds

Brendan and I spent the afternoon together. I find it harder as he grows to be a man to find things in common, but I'm determined to bridge this gap. We spent the afternoon together at the Arizona Science Center seeing the exhibition on the human body. Definitely not an exhibition for little ones, or the faint of heart.  We learned a lot and had a great afternoon. Though I may be a vegetarian for a few days until the emotional effects fade.


~ DeAnn

Tea Display

Remember my tea collection, that I collected for the girls Christmas gift?

I finally found a way to display it and enjoy it even we aren't having tea parties. Take a look:

I love it! 

~ DeAnn

On the Stage or in Audience = FUN!

This week was full of stage fun! The 1st grade music performance and then a matinee at the Hale Theatre.

The girls were so proud, it was a good self esteem builder

What little girl doesn't love Cinderella? We like to go to the theatre a few times a year and its always a wonderful experience from entertainment to a great time to practice ettiquette. The girls had a great time watching Cinderella at the Hale Theatre, a theatre in the round. Any excuse to wear Princess attire is a good time.  I highly suggest checking out local productions from schools to local theatres.  Even Mom had fun wearing her Queen Crown ;)

 DeAnn

Robot Fun

Trinity's class is making and learning about robots.  The girls joined in and made their own, it turned into a fun family craft and then robot play.  I'm told these three robots, make beds, do dishes and even trim trees...oh..how mom wishes it was true.