When your 4th grader NEEDS to get the next book in a series TODAY, you know you’ve hit on a winner! Big W received Cryptid Hunters by Roland Smith for Christmas. His nose has been in the book for the last week. As soon as he turned the last page this afternoon he was ready to read sequel!
Cryptid Hunters [as described on amazon.com]: After their parents are lost in an accident, thirteen-year old twins Grace and Marty are whisked away to live with their Uncle Wolfe-an uncle that they didn’t even know they had! The intimidating Uncle Wolfe is an anthropologist who has dedicated his life to finding cryptids, mysterious creatures believed to be long extinct.
For now there are three books in the Marty and Grace series: Cryptid Hunters, Tentacles, and Chupacabra.
I picked up a copy of Tentacles while my guy was at basketball practice. When we arrived home, he headed straight to his room to read. Umm, worth every penny!
I am always so impressed when my kids receive a thank you note from a friend just days after his party. I always think to myself, “Impressive.” Let’s be honest, we know that the child isn’t begging to write a note to each of his friends! His mother made it a priority and got them in mail. And I know that it is WORK! On the flip side, it is important to me that my boys understand the importance of expressing gratitude-whether it be in person or through the mail.
Little Man had a birthday last month and I was determined to send thank yous! He usually has little-to-no stamina {or interest} when it comes to “extra” work! This was going to be tricky. When I found this thank you card kit for kids there was hope!
Here are my tips for writing thank you notes with kids:
1. Keep it fun.
The awesome card kit came with 10 colored thank you cards and a ton of African-themed stickers. Little Man and I spent time at the kitchen table decorating the cards with monkeys, lions, plants, flowers and speech bubbles. This work was easy, we chatted, and there was little resistance!
2. Decrease frustration.
When children are little, writing multiple cards is very taxing. To decrease the frustration and fatigue, I scanned and printed the inside of one of the colorful cards. Little Man wrote a simple message. Then we scanned and printed enough copies of his message for each of the thank you cards. Next, we cut and pasted the message into the cards. He loved watching the papers come off the printer with his hand writing. {I also had him simply write his name on the envelope as the return address and I took care of the rest.}
3. Do a little at a time.
Writing, cutting, pasting, licking, writing. It takes time and isn’t super exciting. The best thing to do is to break the whole project into pieces. Just do a little at a time. We did the stickers and took a break. He wrote the message and we took a break. It actually took us the better part of an afternoon to complete the cards. There were a few moments of whining, but no tears. I will call that a success.
The cards are in the mail. They didn’t get there days after the party, but they got there just the same.
Big W and I are spending time this morning working on his biography report on Martin Luther King Jr. He was not assigned this great man. He chose to read about him. While researching important quotes for his project, we came across these simple words. “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?'” He didn’t choose to use this quote, but it stayed with me. When it comes right down to it, this says it all. Be good to each other. Simple and beautiful.
Little Man received Putty Creatures as a gift during the holiday season and it was instantly kid approved! A small tin of Thinking Putty {made with silicone-based inert non-toxic synthetic rubbber} can make any creature imaginable! The eyeballs were his favorite! Each tin comes with one set. Make your creature, push in some eyeballs, and call it awesome. When you are done creating- simply squish the putty back into the tin and put the lid on it until next time.
I loved that it was a gift he wanted to play with right away. It involved no screens, yet he was engaged and having fun. I think I am going to order a few of these and keep them on hand for birthday gifts. We are always looking for a unique present to take along to friends’ parties without breaking the bank. This is it. Putty Creatures, a pack of gum, and some candy in a clear goodie bag. Done and done.
Two weeks people, but I am not going to panic. Two weeks from today my kids will be officially on break, which means I need to be officially done with my prep work. What? With Thanksgiving being so late, it is virtually impossible for me to out run this massive snow ball we call “the most wonderful time of the year”.
A perfect example is our advent calender. I usually have it stocked and ready. All the doors full of treasures to be joyfully opened each morning. This year has been an epic failure. In year’s past, I have used the LEGO Advent Calender but when I went the day before Thanksgiving to buy them I found they were sold out! I know better than to wait until the last minute-this isn’t my first time at the rodeo. So now, I am scrambling to find items that fit inside our calendar. {As you can see I am totally screwed come tomorrow! Nothing is ready for the rest of the Advent season.} Since my children are little sneaks, they peeked in all the doors and wondered why the calendar wasn’t full. I quickly quipped in return that they cannot be trusted and I have all the items in hiding. I am pure evil! Nope , in reality, mommy couldn’t get it together this year! Looks like my poor planning will be their windfall. In the end, I am down to cash and chocolate.
I am pretty sure I shouldn’t be using the phrase “totally screwed” when writing a post about Advent. Oh, well. Off now to buy mini-chocolate Santas and gather all the $1 bills I can find in the house. Be merry and bright!
It is time. With December arriving at the end of the week, it is officially time to face the fact that holiday shopping is upon us. A few years ago, I simplified the shopping for my own boys. I give gifts in four categories: something they want, something they need, something to wear, and something to read. Santa still brings one special gift and usually helps me with at least one of the categories. My husband and I give each boy one present and they exchange gifts with each other. It sure has made gift giving more enjoyable. No frenzy. No need to get Christmas frantic. I thought it might be nice this year for them to complete their wishlists using these categories as a guide. I am sure there will be more than one thing under each heading and that is just fine! At least it will make them ponder a bit- instead of creating a long list of toys {and junk}.
Want to give this simple wish list a try with your family this year? All you need is this free downloadable template and a few minutes. Add some hot cocoa and candy cane and you are really going for it!
Little Man asked me to help him write a sign and then slapped it up on his door! {Only 7 and under.} For the most part my boys are good friends and love spending time together. I guess last week things weren’t going as well. My youngest had reached his limit with his brother and a sign was going to take care of it.
It got me to thinking. If a sign on the door actually works, maybe I should give it a try. What signs might I hang on the door?
Or possibly just keep it general and use one that works for any situation in my home.
What would your sign say? {Happy Monday. Mother on!}
Reading should be fun and funny! Oh my gosh, your boys {and girls} will totally dig these books. The humor is aimed directly at boys, in my opinion. You be the judge.
A line from The Dumb Bunnies’ Easter: ” Poppa Bunny carved the turkey, Momma Bunny tossed the salad…and Baby Bunny cut the cheese. ‘That’s my boy,’ said Poppa Bunny.
Nothing like toilet humor, right? The 4-book series is written by Dav Pilkey, under the pseudonym “Sue Denim”. It follows a hilarious family of dumb bunnies. Giggles, from kids and parents, are guaranteed. The plot lines are outrageous and full of backwards adventures. Little Man asks for them over and over. Big W loves to be the one to read them to him! Win-Win.
PS. I kind of have a crush on Dav Pilkey. He writes books kids WANT to read. {It is quite a mind blowing concept.} In addition, I think his autobiography {read its entirety here} is the coolest thing around! Check it out.
Lately, I feel like something’s come between us. I’m cool with that.
My husband gave me this card a few years ago on Mother’s Day. It still makes me giggle and I am sure many of you can relate. This time of year, when we set our clocks back an hour, was always miserable with babies and toddlers. My boys never got the memo that we were given an extra hour of sleep. It always took days for their own clocks to adjust. Which, in turn, was just exhausting.
Since my oldest was an infant we have shared our bed intermittently with a child. In the beginning I was simply too tired and lazy to get up at an ungodly hour, so I would grab him from his crib and bring him to bed with us. Lucky me, he would always go back to sleep-giving me a couple more hours of precious sleep. I used to worry because there was always chatter among the mommies regarding the “right” way to do things. Was I harming my young child for life? Would he be sleeping with us forever? I quietly doubted my decisions. Well, you know what? That big kid sleeps through the night by himself. All that worry was for nothing!
Little Man rarely slept with us when he was tiny {mostly because there wasn’t any room}. A couple of years ago he began crawling into bed around 4am most mornings. It isn’t every day anymore, but we have something between us at least once a week. Guess what? I love it! I know this window of time will close- in the not too distant future- and I am going to cuddle for as long as I can. My husband just smiles and shakes his head. He knows not to fight it, plus the kid sleeps so close to me he doesn’t even know he is there. This time there is no mommy chatter. And if there was, I wouldn’t give it any thought. How wonderful is that? Mothering isn’t for the weak, but somethings DO get easier.
Oh, my crazy cats. They have made me a mother. However, in today’s modern world, there is a mania surrounding motherhood. It may be self-induced, but either way it does exist. Some days [or weeks] I feel it more than others. Recently, I have asked myself, “What do these boys really need?” They are fortunate to have food, shelter, safety, and love as part of their every day lives. Beyond that, what do they REALLY need? And maybe more crucial, “What do I do as a mother that truly means the most to them?”
I don’t have my final answers yet. What do you think? [Do you have older kids? What would they answer?]
