A bit of 4th of July hangover for everyone? Summer kicking your butt? Kids complaining they are bored? Give them a challenge!
Have them make something useful with all those LEGO pieces that are scattered throughout your house. You know the ones. The pieces that once belonged to a set that has long since been destroyed by a little sibling or an ill -fated drop. The ones that lurk in the night waiting for you to step on them! The bane of your existence. Don’t want a LEGO kitchen caddy? Here are 51 other LEGO challenges to keep them busy!
Are your kids not into LEGOS? Check out all my ideas to keep summer minds active and creative.
And as a little teaser…..the trailer for the LEGO movie coming out next year! [This is BIG people.]
My Little Man is a selective eater. I can count the foods he eats on one hand. That may be a bit of an exaggeration, but it isn’t far off. Thankfully, two of those foods are apples and crunchy carrots. He also loves [LOVES] chocolate milk and milkshakes. The problem is I am 99% sure he is lactose intolerant. As one of his only sources of protein, not drinking milk is a big deal. A friend of mine told me that Yami yogurt is lactose free. Sure enough, the makers of Yami use Lactase, a natural enzyme, to remove lactose from the yogurt. Brilliant!! Except I can’t get him to eat the yogurt. Knowing that he loves smoothies, I went stealth and created a fruit smoothie that is dairy free and delicious!! [And this is why mothers should be considered superheros!]
{Dairy Free} Strawbery Smoothie
1-4oz. container of Yami Vanilla yogurt
6 frozen strawberries
1/4 cup Coconut milk
Blend and serve!
It takes less than minute to whip up this smoothie and I make one for him most mornings. He and I even shared one for dessert this week since it has been so hot in Seattle. It was the perfect cool treat on a warm evening! I love that I can easily change the frozen berries [blueberries, raspberries, blackberries}, use almond milk, and add fresh berries to keep things interesting. As long as he drinks them, I will make them!
UPDATED. 3.21.2020. In light of “shelter in place”, “socially distancing”, and “self quarantine”, I am updating this 7 year old blog post. My kids were young in 2013 and I needed to keep them busy. I’ve deleted broken links and added fun stuff that wasn’t available to us years ago. Books on CD have become books on Audible…you get the idea.
Let them run, get dirty, stay up late, sleep in, eat s’mores, and just be kids! Summer is pretty fantastic in so many ways! However, doing work that looks like school can be a total drag. I am taking a new approach this summer. I am throwing out the workbooks [actually I just didn’t buy them] and being more creative. I thought I would share my new approach with you.
Here are few [fun] summer learning ideas to keep their minds active:
//Board Games// Scrabble- Builds spelling, creativity & strategy, math skills. Rummikube- Builds problem solving and math skills Apples to Apples – Excellent game to build vocabulary and practice reading. Balderdash – Players must use language creatively to create a definition of an unknown word.
//Reading// Books on Audible– My oldest loved to listening to audio novels. He enjoyed the narrators. Audible just announced that they are making their vast selection of audio books free until school resumes. It is a great way to spend a lazy afternoon.
TumbleBooks – eBooks online. We have access to TumbleBooks through our county library system. Check your library website to see if your library has TumbleBooks or something similar.
Read a book/Watch the movie – Don’t you love to read a book and then see the movie? So do kids! The possibilities are endless.
Storyline – Storyline Online, streams videos featuring celebrated actors reading children’s books alongside creatively produced illustrations. Readers include Viola Davis, Chris Pine, Lily Tomlin, Kevin Costner, Annette Bening, James Earl Jones, Betty White and dozens more.
//Math// Roll coins old school style. Grab some paper wrappers from the bank, give your kids your spare change jar, and get counting. Perfect for skip counting practice and coin recognition. Who needs Coinstar? We’ve got kids!
Cool Math games An amazing assortment of math games. Little Man would play for hours if I let him!
Bake from scratch. On a cool day [or any day of you have A/C], bake something from scratch. Recipes reinforce following directions and the understanding of fractions. //Writing// All about Me– A wonderful keepsake! Kids fill in the pages all about themselves!
Send postcards. – Sadly, many kids don’t have many opportunities to send mail. Great practice for writing addresses in the correct form. During this time at home, you will probably have to create your own postcards, which is another great activity.
Start a Blogger blog. – Yes! Kids can have blogs too. They are easy to set up and free. Any topic can work for a blog as long is the writer is passionate about the subject. My kids used to write about their summer adventures. I would suggest wordpress.com to start a free blog. There are many tutorials you can find or just let your older kids play around with the formatting. They will figure it out!
Story Stones – Stones with images help kids tell or write a story. You could make your own or purchase incredibly cute pre painted stones. Etsy has MANY to choose from.
//Creativity// Ed Emberly – These learn to draw books are perfect for kids [and grown ups]. They are so easy to follow and kids feel successful right away. Creative Haven Coloring Book– These graphically beautiful coloring books are amazing for older kids. Believe me, they still love to color.
Doodle Books – Ever heard, “I don’t know what to draw?” The doodle books help kids get their pictures started with a few lines already on the page and a prompt on how to finish the drawing. Hours of fun!
Create a photo book – Let your kids take pictures throughout this time inside and help them make a keepsake photo book. They are recording history!
LEGOS– This link is to a blog that presents 52 LEGO challenges. It includes challenges to build a bridge, a playground, and a flag.
//Apps//
I will list a few apps that your kids will love. Find them wherever you find apps!
Dulingo, learn a language
SwiftPlaygrounds, learn to code
Stack the States 2, learn the US states
Dragonbox, math practice
Lightbot, learn to code
Epic!- ebook library
Starfall ABCs- learn the letters
BrainPop and BrainPop Jr- short movies on 100’s of topics
I am taking a moment to write thank you notes for my boys’ teachers. I know that many parents, usually moms, freak out about what to give a teacher at the end of the year. Some spending hours and hours on craft projects and keepsakes. From my 10 years as an elementary school teacher, the hand written notes are actually the gifts I treasure the most. Each of them include heartfelt words that express gratitude and explain the ways in which I touched their child’s life. These are things you don’t hear everyday in the classroom. Many times I had no idea the impact I had on children and their families. It was touching to read their kind words at the end of a long school year. I have many tucked away for safe keeping. I make a point every year to write a note and personally hand it to my sons’ teachers. [I usually tuck a gift card inside because one person can only have so many coffee mugs.]
If your child’s school year has not yet ended, take a minute and thank a teacher in your own way. Believe me, a card can be enough.
I found this adorable thank you card at my local bookstore. I loved the anchor as ode to summer. The Brush & Mallett has creative hand drawn greeting cards [made here in Seattle] for every occasion. Check out their website or their Etsy store.
Yes, that is an orange that Big W is about to hit. The big guy had a playoff game this week. The boys were treated to some fun during batting practice prior to the game. Why not smash the skin off an orange to get you pumped up for a big game? This entertaining departure from regular warm ups made me [and the boys] very happy.
The boys were elated for the obvious reasons. I, on the other hand, loved that our coaches were keeping the kids focused on what is truly important when you are playing baseball [or any sport for that matter] at the age of 8 or 9. They were focused on fun. Our boys were talking about orange juice spraying in their face and wiping their bats with baby wipes when they entered the dugout. [Exactly what second and third graders should be doing!]
My hope is that my boys continue to play for coaches that keep a great perspective and teach them well. Coaches that teach them hard work pays off and consistent practice will lead to improvement. Coaches that teach them tenacity and resiliency, in sports and in life, make you a stronger human being. Coaches that teach that the greatest athletes are also great teammates. I want them to learn that winning is fantastic and losing pretty much sucks.
But in the end, I just want them to love playing and I want them to have coaches that keep the fun in it!
Where is your [ ]? The blank can be filled with sweatshirt, backpack, lunch box, hat, kendama. You name it, my kids have lost it. When our elementary school career started four years ago, I was not the picture of calm when Big W would bound out of the school doors missing an essential item. Honestly, there was usually a freak out on my part and tears for him. As a Kindergartner it would often be the largest thing he carried to school everyday, his backpack! [That we could usually find in the classroom.] Everything else had to be searched for in the lost and found. Have you ever dared to peek at an elementary school’s lost and found? Good gracious! It is not for the faint of heart. The sheer volume is staggering. We could clothe a small village of children from our lost and found alone.
With two boys at school to loose their stuff, it seems I am there multiple times a week this year. Gone are my freak outs! I calmly march them inside to sort through the piles of sweatshirts, jackets, lunch boxes, and hats. [While quietly biting my lip so I won’t mutter, “How is it possible that you lost your sweatshirt again?”] Somehow we have found every item lost this year. I am sure many have not been so lucky. Or the poor mothers don’t even know it is missing. Time is ticking and before you know it the school doors will be closed and those precious items will be gone forever. Double check your house for items you haven’t seen around in a while and then tell them, “You better find your stuff!”
[folded lost and found items. sweatshirts and coats three or four deep on two long tables]
We are entering the gray area of the school year. Not yet over, but motivation is diminishing [on all fronts.]. We have to keep them reading! Finding a book they are excited about is key. I wanted to share with you the titles of two series that are huge hits in our house!
little guys read: Elephant and Piggie
Elephant & Piggie books by Mo Willems are some of Little Man’s favorites. They are great for new readers. The text is simple and predictable. The story lines are easy for kids to relate to and the characters are hilarious! The newest title, A Big Guy Took My Ball, arrived on our doorstep this week. We highly recommend these books for kids of all ages. big guys read: Wings of Fire
Wings of Fire [Books 1 & 2 so far….] is series about five dragonettes, baby dragons, with a destiny to save their world. Big W, almost 9, was hooked from the first page. He devoured the first two books and has been anxiously awaiting the release of the the third installment, due out in June. My oldest is a reluctant reader, so if he is jazzed about this series I can only imagine that many others would be too.
What books do your kids love to read?
Remember, Guys Read, is a great resource to find books boys [and girls] will love to read. [Read about other favorites in hour house here and here.]
I am smack dab in the middle of a fairly intensive photography course. My mind is swimming with new vocabulary, settings, and functions. I have weekly assignments, which I submit for critique, that ask for me to find cooperative subjects.
I thought it might be comical to share with you a few outtakes of my “cooperative” subjects. Taking pictures of my boys is a full contact sport.
[Just a note. These are straight of my camera with no editing. Also, the colors may seem odd because my assignment included experimenting with picture style.]
This is the picture I submitted for critique.
I am learning. Let them be as nuts as they want to be and just keep clicking. Every once in awhile you catch a great moment.
[And on the flip side, I love the outtake shots! Gotta love them for who they are, right?]
“Watch your mouth or I will wash it out with soap!” Bring back any memories? Let’s call it throw-back mothering. And, yep, I have shouted that a time or two in the last few months. It seems my boys [9 and 6 years old] know all the major swear words. Super!! My sweet little babes have the knowledge to swear like a trucker.
Is there a more effective tool than a bar of soap? I think not. I use good old Dove soap to wash my face, so I had a bar available when I needed it. [Luckily it appears that my boys are quick learners. Once was enough, thank you very much!] However, most modern day moms only have liquid soap around the house. So what is a mother to do? A friend recently shared her swabbing technique when a bar of soap is not handy. Simply squeeze a small line of Dawn dish washing soap on your index finger and swab the inside of their mouth. [An alternative would be to rub the soap on their front teeth.] I could not stop giggling as she described her method! If only our kids knew the enjoyment we get from discussing their demise. Evil I tell you, pure evil.
What techniques do you use to dissuade your children from swearing?
Old school methods are effective, including throw back snack service. Why fix it if it isn’t broke?
Oh yes! They are completely crazy, but they are mine. They made me a mom. Nothing has been the same since I held my little men in my arms. Instant love. Nothing has ever made me so happy. I know you feel the same.
My hope is that you are celebrated in every way this weekend! Celebrated for making lunches, signing permission slips, reading books at bedtime, planning birthday parties, playing chauffeur, doing the laundry, finding a lost toy, calling the furnace repairman, going on field trips, cheering at games, working extremely hard at your “other” job in the outside world, burning the candle on both ends, worrying you are doing right. Celebrated for being kind, graceful, loving, loyal, committed, fierce, beautiful and real. Happy Mother’s Day to all of you! xoxo {P.S. I love you Mom!}
And the text from my very first blog post in 2009. I was just a mom trying to survive. And so [Where is June?] was born.
Ever think you are the only one?
Why blog? Because the cool kids do it? No, I want to write as a form of free therapy! Often times at the end of the day, I wonder if I am the only one that needed to send a child to his room 8 times for not listening and talking back. Or if any other mother had to add a lock to the door into the garage so that her toddler wouldn’t sneak out to sit in “daddy’s car”! Or if am the ONLY ONE who feels like the hostess, waitress, cook, bus boy, and the dishwasher. And no one ever seems to leave a tip!
If you would like to “listen” in….I am happy to share! Any advice? I would be happy to take it!
