Kids – Page 13 – Blessings Multiplied

Pottery Creations at Hearts of Clay

Karlie and Brina having fun at Hearts of Clay

For the girls birthday they received a Hearts of Clay gift certificate so we did a “Girls Night Out” this summer. We had a blast figuring out what they wanted to create, making the moldings, painting, chitchat, and having fun together. It was neat watching them come up with and create their treasures. One of the best parts was when the store worker told them that at the end of the session they can dump any of their remaining paint from their pallets onto the floor, they girls thought that was awesome! They asked the worker several times to make sure she wasn’t just kidding….how often do kids get permission to spill paint onto the floor.

They both made plates – Brina made the flower one and Karlie the square one

Karlie made a miniature goat and named it Oreo!

Painting their pottery creations!

Brina having a grand time!

All smiles!

Karlie’s rocket, planet, and space plate!

Brina’s flower plate

With the extra clay leftover from their plates they made a black lab, Oreo the goat, a heart, cat, giraffe, and an egg!

At the end of their session they let the girls dump their remaining paint onto the carpeted floor! They thought that was awesome!!! Karlie’s ready to dump hers now!

Karlie emptying her pallet of paint onto the floor!

Brina putting her paint onto the floor! So exciting!

Need to get all the paint onto the floor…..can’t forget to clean the brush off onto the floor too!

It was a great evening out at Hearts of Clay! Thankful for a nice evening with the girls.

Hop, Skip, Jump, Play, Swing, and Braid

All the kids had various ways to go up and down the road before they could open their treasure box – including running, skipping, hopping on one foot, hopping on two feet, etc….

After breakfast every morning while the cousins were here the five kids got to open up an envelope with clues leading to that days treasure chest. Before opening the treasure chest for the day they were required to complete the tasks or solve the puzzles before locating the treasure chest. It was something fun that they looked forward to doing every morning. All the kids participating and had a blast completing the tasks assigned each morning. Every morning it was something different (sometimes it was a puzzle, scavenger hunt, physical activity, or something else).

They are almost to the finish line! Keep going! They all made it and received their goodies for the day.

Sweet girls drying off and doing some chalk drawings after a swim in the pool

Noah and Skipper! Skipper loved having all the kids running around and playing outside all week!

Aunt Mirm showing the girls a neat game!

Brina loves little kids! She was so sweet pushing her two little cousins in the swings. Too cute!

Aunt Mirm wanted to try a new type of hairdo and Karlie was her test subject…..needless to say Karlie was patient, but not overly impressed with the styling. She was a good sport about it though!

Brina undid her braids that Aunt Mirm had done. She loved having her snazzy crinkled hair that day!

Brina wanted me to take a picture of the back of her hair too!

Window Easels

Noelle’s window art

One of our fun summer crafty activities that ended up a big hit with all the kids was Window Easels! Each kid (ages 4 to 12) got to pick their own window as their easel and could draw whatever they wanted on it. I had a stack of window paint (like the ones you put on car windows) and each kid could come grab what colors they needed for their particular artwork. They had a blast doing it. I didn’t get a huge amount of pictures during the activity because I was helping distribute the paint and wiping up any drips as they happened. It has a big hit! I left the painted easels up for the rest of their stay so everyone could enjoy their artwork for several days. You could see the artwork both inside and outside of the house which was pretty neat! Some of the kids choose to paint both the top and bottom windows (while standing on a chair) while others just wanted to do one window.

Brina did both of her windows

Noah’s creatively decorated windows!

Nadia, the youngest one of the group, had a lot of fun doing her window – “All by herself!”

Karlie packed a lot onto her window – Art, Names, Signs, Shapes, Math, and more fun stuff!

Not only was it a lot of fun it gave me a good excuse to scrub down the windows this summer too! It was the perfect summer craft. It kept the kids entertained for quite awhile and there were very little clean up. Plus no one had to wait for turns at the easel because everyone had their own and they all painted at the same time. It was fun watching them paint and hearing them chitchat at the same time.

Target Practicing

Daddy showing Brina how to shoot the black powder gun!

Brina taking a shot at the target

Daddy showing Karlie how to shoot with black powder

Karlie taking another shot!

Robotics Activities

Working on robotics!

The girls have been part of the STEM Club at their school. They have really enjoyed learning so much through the club, including more about robotics. Since they have been learning about robotics and are really interested in learning more so Jake has been doing fun robotics projects with them at home as well. Here are a few of the projects they have been working on recently.

Brina and Karlie checking out the robotic

Daddy helping the girls put together one of the robots

This is one that Jake had from college. He pulled it out and had the girls help him get it back up and running again.

Watching the robot spin around the kitchen!

Family STEM Activity Night

Karlie watching the robotics demonstration right after giving her speech to the students, faculty, parents, and family members in attendance. So proud of her! She was the only 3rd grader to give a speech that night!

The girls had a blast at their Family STEM Night! Karlie gave a presentation to everyone in attendance about their STEM Club and robotics competition. That night they had a lot of fun activities as well as informational meetings throughout the evening. Brina and Karlie had a blast learning, soaking in all the great information, and participating in the various activities. It was neat to see them work both independently and together to create some neat projects in the evening!

Learning about the cool pieces and their purposes. Karlie was thrilled to hold the one that had been up in space!

Karlie testing her dragon racer.

Brina testing her dragon racer.

Putting together a soft bed for the raw egg.

Almost done with wrapping our egg!

Final wrapping to their egg nicknamed “Pink Flemingo” for the egg drop competition. I remember doing a similar activity in elementary school. Super Fun!

Under all those pink and orange feathers and bubble wrap is a raw egg – “Pink Flemingo”!

A little concerned that the Pink Flemingo may have broken in the drop so they are hurrying to get back and unwrap her!

Brina so proud of her Pink Flemingo egg drop activity and wrapping skills! The Pink Flemingo did survive the egg drop! Yay! The girls loved this activity!

Making their airplane gliders to fly and measure!

Heart Reflections: 30 Quick Tips on Being a Positive Parent

The other day I was filling out a card for a cousin who recently had a baby. As I was writing the card I had a whirlwind of thoughts, advice, and things I wanted to share with this couple who just recently began this wonderful parenting journey. This is part of what I shared with them which was also a great reminder to me and hopefully an encouragement to you if you’re a parent as well. I have edited it to remove their specific names on the card.

Congratulations! We are so happy for your sweet family! Welcome to the crazy and fun parenting party! Wishing all of you a lifetime packed full of laughter and wonderful memories. Praying that parenting will be a great adventure for you. We are thrilled for all of you and wish you the very best! Many Blessings!

Parenting Tips We Want to Share (I added a couple more to the list since writing the card):

Laugh as often as possible (even at your own mistakes)
Make a point to hug your child and tell her that you love her everyday
Cherish the memories, they really do grow up way too fast
Show grace and mercy often
Never discipline when you’re angry
Take lots of pictures, especially of your times together
Seek God’s wisdom daily for your life, marriage, and parenting
Be a positive and encouraging cheerleader for your kid
Take time regularly to listen to your child
Breathe deeply and count to 10 when your patience is being stretched thin
You will feel more like a “SuperDad” and “SuperMom” after a full nights sleep
Spend quality one-on-one time with your child
Read to them, sing with them, and play with them
Pray a lot – some days you’ll really need it
Protect, guide, and nurture the best you can then trust that God will work in their hearts
Words can be used to build up or tear down (make sure to chose them wisely)
It’s the little things that make the biggest impact on our kids
It doesn’t have to be flashy or expensive to be fun
Be content with your life
Give generously to others
Find teachable moments each day (kids love learning new stuff)
Speak kindly to and about others (little eyes are watching what you do and hearing what you say)
Stand up for what’s right (even when it’s hard)
Allow your kids to make some mistakes on their own so they can learn
Get creative and have fun together – life’s too short to be boring
Smile, slow down a little, and enjoy this wonderful part of your life
Make the “normal” everyday events exciting
Go on adventures
Do family devotions and pray together
Explore and try new activities together

There are so many areas of our lives that are stretched when we are parents. While being a parent is the most rewarding experience it is also one of the most challenging. It feels like I am constantly making mistakes or doing/saying something that’s not edifying or encouraging to my kids. Yes, they know very well how to “push my buttons,” but that doesn’t mean I have to over react either. Thankful for my kids and the many lessons they teach me about parenting.

Family Recipe: Mom’s Delicious Dirt

My Mom used to make this amazing “Dirt” recipe when we were kids. This recipe uses gummy worms, oreos, lime jello, and cool whip. I have had a variety of different dirt recipes over the years, but this is the one I grew up on. The combination of these ingredients always taste delicious and gummy worms are super fun to eat no matter what! The other day I was trying to figure out what to make for dessert for our Community Group meeting when the girls insisted that I make “Grandma Penny’s Dirt” since we had leftover gummy worms from another event!

Mom’s Delicious Dirt Recipe:

1 package of Oreos
2 (6 oz) large boxes of Lime Jello
1 container Cool Whip
Gummy Worms

Put the oreos in a ziplock bag and use a rolling pin or another item to crush the whole oreos into small pieces. Take about 1/2 of the crushed oreos and press them into the bottom of a 9×13 dish. Make the lime jello according to the directions on the box. Once it is made pour half of it over top of the layer of oreos and put in the refrigerator to set. Leave the other half of the lime jello in the bowl and put it in the fridge to set. Once the jello is firm mix the container of cool whip into the bowl of jello. Add the cool whip and jello mixture on top of the jello layer in the 9×13 dish. Place the remaining amount of crushed oreos on top of the cool whip and jello layer and add your gummy worms. (If you’re not planning on serving it within the next few hours wait until an hour or two before to place the oreos and gummy worms on top).

The layers of oreos blend really well together and make this a fun treat for kids of all ages! I did take the pictures of the dessert before going to Community Group, however, in our rush to get home and the kids into bed before it was too late I did not get an individual piece shot of the dessert. I am sure before too long the girls will think of another event I will need to make it for and hopefully I can get a snap shot of it at that time.

Having A Splashin Good Time!

Karlie going for a ride under the water! Hang on!

Brina going for a ride under the water. She didn’t relax as much because she was more concerned that Jake could hold his breath longer and wouldn’t come up for air in time. He did!

This one makes me laugh! The girls were standing in line behind us chit – chatting. I am not sure what they were talking about it, but Brina thought it was hilarious! Love it when the two of them make each other giggle. Hope they remain great friends their entire lives!

Getting up on the lily pad took some extra energy – it was slick! Towards the end of the second day Brina was getting tired and chilly so we put a life jacket on her for the last hour. She didn’t want to stop playing in the water so this was a good compromise! Resting on the lily pad for a little bit and talking about their day.

Trying to hold on as the lily pad was spinning in circles! Not sure how they still had the energy and all those giggles left in them, but they were having a grand time!

As we were getting ready to wrap up for the day Brina had to do one more run before we left Great Wolf Lodge.

Karlie trying to smile through the tears! “I just don’t want to go home Mom, I’ve had so much fun!” She wanted me to walk around and take a bunch of pictures the last 5 minutes they were open and kept asking me “Mom, are you sure you got enough pictures? I don’t ever want to forget our time here together!”

Karlie with a big smile as she finally crashed on the trip home.

It didn’t take long before Brina was asleep too.

We had a wonderful time together at Great Wolf Lodge. On the way home Jake and I figured out that we spent about 20 hours actually in the water playing! Considering we were only there for a day and a half we packed a lot of fun into that time. The girls had a great time and we had fun too. All of us were exhausted! Despite Karlie’s fear of not getting enough pictures I think we have plenty to look back on and remember this wonderful trip together.

Another Day of Fun!

Breakfast anyone?!

Since we were all exhausted last night after a full day of water fun we decided to postpone the cake until breakfast. I don’t think we have every let the girls eat cake for breakfast, but your 9th birthday only comes once in a life time so we might as well celebrate and enjoy it. The girls were super excited to eat their cake and it was delicious! Thank you Tip Top Cake shop for the great cakes and thank you Jake for wrapping them very careful so we could pack them up to North Carolina!