What We Like Wednesdays: Go Away Monster:

We had fun playing "Go Away Monster". This game is much more age appropriate for Miles and Liam who are 3 but Aidan (soon to be 6) joined in the fun too. This game not only has educational value with it's tactile exploration, shape recognition and need to take turns but it's also lots of fun yelling "Go Away Monster!"

What We Like Wednesdays: UNO

Aidan loves games of all kinds, board games, card games, made up games, you name it...he loves it. He's got a very competitive spirit that we're working on teaching him how to be a good winner and a good loser. This is still work in progress.

His most recent favorite right now is UNO. It's a fun card game, simple enough that he learned how to play quickly (he still needs some work on strategy). Although his brothers aren't old enough to play this yet, I can see how this game is going to be a real family hit in the near future. The game says it's for 7+ years but I think it's simple enough for a 5 yr old. What's best about this game is it's so portable, take it camping, play indoors, outdoors, etc.. you can play this just about anywhere.

What We Like Wednesdays: Summer Reading, Big Green Monster

We've always done a great deal of reading but now with summer here and longer days, we find ourselves reading quite a bit more. To add more fun to the reading, we joined our public library's summer reading program. The boys are having lots of fun with this, after every 15 minutes of reading they get a sticker in a reading log, when they collect 4 hours worth of stickers they get to go to the library and collect a prize, and after 8 hours worth of stickers they get a free book of choice plus a bundle of coupons including some free ice cream cone coupons...talk about incentives. The boys are excited about this. After joining this reading program, Aidan has really gotten into his chapter book reading which amazes us all as to how much his reading has progressed since we made the change from children's picture/story books. As for the twins, they aren't quite reading on their own, so they collect their stickers after being read to for the assigned amount of time.


Miles favorite book right now "Go Away Big Green Monster" by Ed Emberley has been a favorite since this past Halloween. All the boys really love this fun read but Miles by far enjoys it the most. Every time we go to the library he searches the shelves for this one and is so pleased if he finds it. Since it's been a favorite for awhile now I just might have to get our own copy.



So if you're looking for some more summer time activity, drop by your local library and see what fun summer programs they might have going on. You can never go wrong with reading.

What We Like Wednesdays: In Full Bloom

Everything is in full bloom here. This precious gift from mother nature brings a smile to my face.

What We Like Wednesdays: Harris Ranch

If you have a hankering for beef, Harris Ranch is the place to be. On the way home from grandma's we decided to stop at Harris Ranch for dinner. It's this beautiful oasis in the middle of dare I say nowhere. Or what seems like nowhere when you're coming from urban living but really you're surrounded by a beautiful landscape of rolling hill, agriculture and what looks like thousands of cows. A bit smelly when you arrive but once you get passed the smell, you can't help but fall in love with this hacienda style inn and restaurant.






We enjoyed strolling around, admiring the architecture and decor,




the boys loved the numerous fountains




and for some odd reason got a real kick out of the cow hide couches.

Daddy and I both loved our dinners. He had the cowboy cut prime rib and I had a fabulous hickory smoked salt, brown sugar, and whiskey rubbed rib eye steak, both medium rare of course. We're both shameless beef lovers so this was just heaven for us. We enjoyed these with a glass of wine, huge glass of wine, they must have poured 1/3 of the bottle of wine in each glass...definitely no need to order a bottle. They also have a generous kids menu, which the boys enjoyed too.



So if you're a beef lover and looking for a little self-indulgence (or a lot) take a drive to the San Joaquin Valley, you can't miss the huge Harris Ranch sign right of Interstate 5.

What We Like Wednesday: Daddy Our Hero

I've been thinking about Father's Day already so I'll continue with that thought and dedicate this Wednesday to our hero "Daddy". We absolutely love Daddy. One of his greatest qualities is that he is definitely a "take charge" kind of person who gets things done. You can count on him to follow through until the task is done. He's got lots of other great qualities and some not so good ones too, but this one is definitely shining right now.

If you've been reading my blog, you'll know that we recently had a most unfortunate event with grandma while on vacation in Spain. "Daddy",(Max) took charge and had every detail outlined and taken care of with a few delegations to me, mostly some translation and phone calls. But he made sure that every particular point had been taken care of. His follow through and attention to detail is one I'm most impressed with, whether it was dealing with medical care, support for grandpa, or the small stuff like cancelling their newspaper delivery, you could be assured that he'd already thought of it and outlined exactly how it would be taken care of. I know in an earlier post I said there were no heroes to this event but I've decided I need to take that back. Daddy truly is our HERO.

What We Like Wednesdays: Flowerlicious

I love flowers and my boys do too, especially Miles. When we're out walking, Miles will always point out flowers whether they're growing in someone's yard, on the roadside, or even the little dandelions growing in the park. He loves to spot them and share them. And if they're the fragrant kind, I encourage the boys to take a whiff (although this might not be helping Miles allergies??)

My favorites are tulips and peonies. It's been quite awhile since I've enjoyed the beauty of peonies so I recently bought some. They're just exquisite. They bring a smile to my face every time I walk into our livingroom. It's amazing what a bouquet of flowers will do to brighten up a room and your mood. I find their beauty comforting. I like to spoil myself once in awhile with some nice flowers but, it doesn't really have to be anything fancy to be enjoyed. You can pick flowers from your yard, a handful of wildflowers, a few sprigs of lavender, or some blossoms off a tree, place them in a vase, jar or whatever you might have on hand will do. Enjoy their beauty, it's all around us this time of year.

What We Like Wednesdays: Move Over Thomas

Move over Thomas there's a new guy in town... and his name is Lightening McQueen. Well, I think my boys may have finally moved on from Thomas and his friends. This has been a phase I thought would never end. But, it seems they are now hooked on Cars (Thanks, Uncle Jess I blame you for this one). Not just any old cars but the Cars from Disney. Their Uncle bought them a track set with a set of cars that they were just thrilled with. And because truth be told, I do enjoy indulging them from time to time, I decided over Spring break to surprise them with the movie as a special treat. It's been a snowball effect since then...all we hear about now is Cars.

Although, I'm generally a Disneyphobe, I have to admit, Cars has a well delivered moral that was perfect especially for my oldest (5 1/2 yrs old). After the film we got to discuss with the boys why helping a friend was more important than winning. It was clear it left Aidan a bit puzzled but he was also clearly thinking about it. So, for now I'll endure this phase and during their play when they act out the piston cup race, I will continue to remind them the moral of the story.

What We Like Wednesday: Got Plasma?

A plasma car that is. We've actually had this for quite awhile, a gift from grandma, but it's only recently that my boys have started to really enjoy it. I think they were a bit young for it early on and didn't really get it's full potential. But now, they love it. Two can ride on it at a time, or sometimes they take turns pushing each other. We'll definitely be keeping this around for awhile.

What We Like Wednesday: Stomp That Rocket!

With Spring here and the weather getting nicer (when we aren't having spring showers that is) I like to encourage my boys to play outside as much as possible. What better way to do that than with some outdoor toys. One that we just pulled out again is this Stomp Rocket. This is one we've had for awhile but my boys don't seem to tire of it. That's what I call a first-rate toy, one that just keeps the fun coming.

The nature of this toy, is that only one person at a time can use it. Of course we've had some struggles with this. I do think it's a great way for them to learn about cooperating in a group activity, as they wait for their turn. We've taken this with us to the park and there's always been other kids who have approached us and wanted a try, so it's also been a nice lesson in sharing with others. If you're looking for some outdoor fun, give this one a try.

What We Like Wednesday: Gardening Tot

It never fails, every time I purchase a bundle of herbs, whether it be cilantro, basil, or thyme, I can never use the entire bunch before it turns into some stinky black mess, yuck! Because of this, I finally decided to plant my own herb garden so I can just snip what I need. I bought a few plants, some soil and dug out a hodge podge of containers from our basement. With a few handy helpers, I was able to set up an herb garden on our back deck in a jiffy.



Although all the boys really enjoy helping with gardening and yard work, playing with gardening tools, shoveling, raking, watering etc. I think my most invested helper is Liam. He really enjoys being out in the yard and helping with whatever task you give him. Gardening is the perfect way to teach the kids about respecting nature, mother earth, and where our food comes from.

What We Like Wednesday - Trucks, Trucks, and More Trucks

The hot topic in our house right now is cars and trucks. The boys especially love all sorts of work trucks and construction machinery. So much so, that every time we're on the road the boys keep an eye out for big trucks and shout out to everyone when one is spotted. Especially Liam, who is obsessed with bulldozers..we'll be driving down the road when suddenly from behind I'll here him shouting "look, look a bulldozer, it's a yellow bulldozer!" or "I saw a crane mama, did you see it!" and garbage day is always a thrill, you'll find Miles and Liam standing at our front window watching as the trucks make their way up our street.




So with trucks in mind, our most recent favorite book is The Little Dump Truck. This book is full of colorful eye-catching illustrations and is written in a fun rhyming verse. We like to read this to the tune of "I'm a Little Tea Pot". Check it out. If your a truck lover, I'm sure you'll love it too!

What We Like Wednesdays: Coloring Fun For Easter

The boys love to color...because of this, I make sure to keep plenty of crayons, paper, and coloring books in the house. There's lots to be learned from coloring. Despite some arguments against it, my background in occupational therapy leads me to believe coloring encourages cognitive development including creativity, as well as physical functional development. I observe this in my kids when they color. I'm able to see their differences in attention and focus as well as their coordination, grip and endurance. These are all important skills for handwriting readiness. So as long as they're interested in coloring, I encourage and indulge them in this favored past time.

We recently enjoyed coloring these great Easter coloring pages I came across over at "make and takes" fabulous blog. So, if your looking for some great Easter activities and you want to encourage your child's development, check them out. Oh and did I mention they were free!

what we like wednesday: Dinner Parties

It's so easy to hunker down at home and just go through the motions of the ins and outs of our daily lives. I find myself doing this, especially during those dreary winter months. After awhile, you can get lost in this and forget how much fun it is to have friends over for dinner and a bit of social time. Well with Spring here, things are changing...it's time for some fun dinner parties and when the weather gets even nicer, we'll move those parties outside.

The boys just love it when we have friends over...and it really does draw out their personalities. Just watching them with their friends really demonstrates what social beings we are and what a positive impact time with friends has on children. We recently had friends over for a little play time and dinner (I was babysitting) and everyone was so excited. Liam was so chatty and it just made me smile to here him say to everyone, with much excitement "Come on guys, let's go play in my room!" Watching Miles bring out his favorite toys to show and share with everyone was just so telling of his kind and caring nature. And Aidan...well he loves to direct the kids and has lots of ideas as to what they should be doing ( yeah some might call it a little bossy).

Best of all is when we sat down for dinner. They all were so pleased to be having dinner together. It was taco night, a meal that allows them lots of Independence and choices. They all got to fix their own tacos and decide what they wanted on them. It was such an empowering moment for them all to be able to make choices and share and encourage each other to try different foods. Truth be told, my kids aren't the best eaters, they're picky but with their peers, they ate the best I've seen them eat in a long time. So there's something to be said about dinner time with friends.

Celebrating St. Patrick's Day on What We Like Wednesday

Some leprechauns in my house want to wish you a Happy St.Patrick's Day. We had fun today with this cute leprechaun hat and beard Aidan made. And, we all agreed that Miles and Liam made the perfect leprechauns.

What we like this Wednesday is, dressing up and pretend play. The kids had so much fun pretending they were leprechauns looking for a pot of gold. Our home was full of giggles and squeals. I wish I had planned in advance and had bought some chocolate gold coins (note to self, will do this next year) and hidden them somewhere for the kids to find, instead I improvised with some chocolate eggs. Even without the gold coins they enjoyed themselves. I really love watching them and seeing how their imagination works and where it takes them. It's amazing to watch it's progression.

All the boys demonstrate a good sense of creativity and are able to engage in pretend play. We've had firefighters, doctors, scientists, dinosaurs, Pascal (from The Red Balloon) plus much much more come in to our home through the imagination of our boys. Miles and Liam (3 yrs old) are really just starting to truly develop this skill. But, Aidan's (5 1/2 yrs old) imagination has really evolved tremendously. The stories he can weave are just magical and he can really get lost in playing a character. I'm starting to wonder if there isn't just a bit of theater in him.

What We Like Wednesdays: The Magic Schoolbus

Screen time, yes, I know a hot topic in many households. But I must say this, prior to screen time, there were many a burned dinners in this home. Many times I stepped away from my cooking to see what the ruckus was about, break up a scuffle, wipe away some tears, to return to a blackened meal, no I wasn't cooking Cajun. What I've found is that screen time is best while I do dinner prep unless of course they are engrossed in some sort of play before hand then I just don't interrupt and hope that it carries through til dinner is completed.

You're probably asking yourself right about now, "Why all this talk about screen time?" Well it's just that we have discovered, The Magic School Bus. We absolutely love them. I've always monitored what the kids watch and have tried to stick to educational, age appropriate DVDs. Well, The Magic School Bus is just that. The Magic School Bus revolves around a classroom of children who explore different subjects while in magic school bus. You can watch some videos here. Our favorite is the episode about the human body. Days after watching, while on our way to school, Aidan (5 yrs old) began to tell me about the function of white blood cells and differentiate red vs. white blood cells. When I asked him about where he had learned this, he responded with, "The Magic School Bus" I was amazed. So if my kids are going to have screen time so I can prepare dinner or sometimes take a shower, then I definitely want it to be of some educational value.

The other thing that's great about The Magic School Bus is they have books too. I was lucky enough to score a whole collection of these on EBay at a fabulous price. Although I was thrilled about the EBay score, Aidan was most thrilled about his new books. So if you're looking for some new reading material or videos for your kids, you may want to check these out.

What We Like Wednesday: A Hodge Podge Including an Oldie But Goody

We've got some fun stuff going on here which I'm thankful for at the moment. Rainy weather and sick kids makes for a home bound household. It during these times that I'm in search of some good entertainment that helps us make it through the day. I usually keep some goodies in the closet for times like these, or as special prizes for good behavior, last minute gift for someone etc. Actually need to find a new hiding place for these items as the boys have discovered the treasure closet. I digress, let's get back to the main topic, shall we.
This is an oldie but goody. Perfection, I remember playing this at a neighbors house when I was a kid many (yes many) years ago. We rediscovered the joy of it while at a friend's house during Superbowl Sunday and decided this was something worth having. The kids absolutely love it, and what's even better is that this game has some educational value. Playing this game challenges cognitive abilities such as, attention span, spatial relations, and focus/concentration. These are the kind of toys/games I especially love. What's especially great about this is that every one young and old can play this. With my 3 yr olds I initially didn't set the timer, just letting them put the pieces in. After a few times of this we were then able to set the timer for them along with the rest of us.



My kids love trains and they love puzzles so this little goody packed plenty of fun. Ride on Loco, it's a small 9 piece puzzle that forms a 6 inch square with a round track. Wind up toy and watch it go round and round. If your thinking of Easter already, specifically Easter baskets, this is a perfect little gift to add to those baskets.


And finally, thanks to my friend Ebba, who brought these over for the boys, we've been enjoying fuse beads. Ebba put these together in little packages with a small pegboard in each as a party favor for her kids birthday party. What a fabulous idea. So once again, this was a great activity that we all enjoyed, my only caveat is this should be done with close supervision for the little ones. As I stepped away for a minute to refill my coffee mug, Miles ( 3 1/2 yrs old) had stuck a bead up his nose. Thankfully I was able to get it out but it sure had me in a bit of a panic for a moment. Besides that scary moment, this has been fun and it's another one of those great activities that allows for creativity. Aidan was thrilled when he made and "L" in his square, "L for Liam" It's always a sweet experience to watch my kids take such pride in the things they make.

Since it looks like we have a few more days of being home bound I'm certain we'll be enjoying these new goodies for awhile.

What We Like Wednesday: Resale Toys and Dado Squares

I recently traded in some toys to one of those resale toy shops where you can either get 40% cash back or 50% in trade (these percentages differ from shop to shop). So I opted for the trade. There are several of these shops near us but I especially love Toy Safari, they have a great variety on new and used toys to choose from. The best deal about these resale shop is getting to unload some of your old things that have lost everyone's interest for something new and exciting. And what do you know, it's also one more way to live a greener life, reuse and recycle those toys. My kids don't care if the toys have been previously loved, they are happy to play with toys that are new to them and I'm happy to help keep toys out of our landfills.



With that said, this time around I chose these great Dado Squares. The boys have really enjoyed playing with these. They've built all sorts of structures, including a multi-layered parking garage for their trains. It has been fun watching them at work with these, as they encourage them to explore their imagination and creativity.



So, if you've got a bunch of toys laying around your house that your kids too have lost interest in or have outgrown, I encourage you to find your local resale toy store. It's a win win situation for everyone and you just might find yourself a great set of Dado Squares.

What We Like Wednesdays: Grappling the Complex With Simple Reading Fun

Having children has meant learning lots of new practices, the learning curve hasn't always been a smooth one. But, if there's one thing I can confidently say I got right, it's that I've taught my boys the joy of reading. From as far back as I can remember, I have always loved books. Reading a good book can always put a smile on my face. I wanted to make sure that my boys would experience this same bliss, for this reason, I have read to them religiously. Whether it be bed time or just some downtime during the day, we read. We make a weekly visit to the library so imagine, we read lots of books. Most recently we've read two books that we really enjoyed.



Round Like a Ball by Lisa Campbell Ernst. This book has fun diecut pages that leaves the boys guessing to the end, when they get to fold out a brilliant illustration of the earth. I absolutely love this books message of preserving our earth. Our household has been making an effort to live green in an effort to honor and protect our earth so this book is an excellent source to continue to support this message.



Is There Really a Human Race by Jamie Lee Curtis and Laura Cornell, is another book we recently read and enjoyed. It's a sweet story that has us looking at humanity, and sends the message, " be kind and have acceptance". My boys love this book fun rhythmic tempo, I love it because it reinforces what I aspire to teach my kids.

Both these books address complex ideas in a fun way that children can enjoy while still addressing the messages we hope to teach our children. Definitely two books we'll be adding to our family's favorites.

What We Like Wednesday: Ladybug Game

We got a new board game in the house, The Lady Bug Game. Aidan and Miles really enjoy playing board games, Liam will play with lots of redirecting but doesn't seem to enjoy it as much. I'm hoping in time they will all enjoy them equally..it just makes for a more successful game time.

We've been exploring new board games that everyone can play. I like this game because it promotes counting for the little ones and you can take it one step further, doing math (addition and subtraction) with the aphids earned or lost for your older child. The boys love the characters, cards, and moving past those bullying ants. A game that reinforces counting, math and is fun for all is definitely a game that makes it on our hit list.