Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
I just finished leaving the book Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder to the girls. This series was one of my favorites growing up as a kid. The girls loved it so much that they begged to start reading the second book in the series right away.
The book is about a little girl named Laura Ingalls who grew up to write the Little House books. She lived in a snug little log house deep in the woods of Wisconsin in the late 1870s with her Pa, Ma, older sister Mary, and baby sister Carrie.
This is the first book of the series and a great one to read to your kids. We have an older version of the book (from when I was a kid), but the story is exactly the same. They even have a picture every few pages that the girls enjoyed looking at as we read together.
A Spooktacular Halloween
Monster bags, note, and goodies on their bar stools at breakfast. They were excited to see a little treat waiting for them at breakfast. These bags were too cute, the package came with a variety of eyes and mouths that you could put together in any combination.
Here is a picture of one of the pancake, sausage and bacon Halloween monsters the girls ate for breakfast.
Jake even got festive Halloween sprinkles on his toast!
Karlie’s goody bags to share with her class are all packed and ready to distribute!
Brina’s Halloween class goodies are packed and ready to go!
Teacher Halloween Gifts
A monster and note waiting on Karlie’s seat when I picked her up from school.
Brina had an orange monster and note waiting on her seat in the van when I picked her up from school.
Our little Dancer and Superwoman!
The girls were super excited to have the opportunity to meet up with their cousins (we were able to capture a picture of the adorable blue crayon….there was also a cute little monkey that joined us that evening)!
Every day for the month of October the girls got a little treat in their pumpkins (if they did well at school, after school activities, and at home). On Halloween Day they got their last little goodies. Some of the items they received were Halloween socks, Halloween Underwear, books, glow sticks, crafts, and more!
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Family Activities: 3 Big Pumpkins with 6 Different Faces!
One side of the pumpkins had a Mr. Potato Head type face on it! Karlie’s “serious” pumpkin, Grandma Penny & Great Grandma Willa’s “silly” pumpkin, and Brina’s “puppy dog” pumpkin! This side of the pumpkin took a lot less time to do. It was super easy and if you don’t want to mess with carving or cleaning out a pumpkin this is a great alternative. The girls loved picking out the pieces for their pumpkins and designing a face.We were super excited to have Grandma Penny and Great Grandma Willa come visit us for a few days in October. During their visit we were able to squeeze in a lot of fun activities. One of the activities was carving pumpkins! The girls had a blast hanging out with both Grandmas and have a lot of great memories of their time with us. Thankful that they were able to come visit us. 🙂
The other side of the pumpkins had the carved version on it which was perfect for the evening. Karlie’s “scary” pumpkin, Grandma Penny & Great Grandma Willa’s “cat” pumpkin, and Brina’s “happy” pumpkin sitting on the front porch.
The PROCESS……
Scooping out the pumpkin seeds
Gross……slimy pumpkin hands!
Karlie designed her own “scary” pumpkin face complete with eyelashes! She drew her face on a piece of paper and Jake helped her transfer it to her pumpkin. So proud of her scary pumpkin!
Brina wanted a “happy” pumpkin!
Trying to get Skip-A-Doo to pose with them in front of the pumpkins…..ha! Skipper wasn’t quite sure what was going on, but I have to give them credit for trying to get her to cooperate for the picture!
The girls had a lot of fun doing the pumpkins with Grandma Penny and Great Grandma Willa. They thought it was neat having a “2 sided” pumpkin with different faces on each side. The jack-o-lantern that they carved was their night pumpkin and the silly faces were their day pumpkins. We used the pumpkins seeds to make 3 Seasoned Pumpkin Seed recipes. Did you carve or decorate pumpkins? I would love to see your pumpkins, feel free to post a link to your pictures in the comment section below!
Leaves + Pumpkins + Ghosts = Oh My….It’s Halloween
Karlie and Brina raked up a bunch of leaves to “stuff” the pumpkin!
What a difference a year makes…..so much has happened over the past few months it is hard to believe it is Halloween again! I like to think that I have learned all the lessons I need to know by now but I find myself still trying to balance this thing called life. At times I am torn between having fun with my family and getting things done on my never-ending and always-growing “to do” list (does anyone else struggle with this or is it just me?!).
Sometimes the best way to get things done is to have fun doing it with your family. For example, you can make raking leaves a game by seeing who can stuff their “leaf pumpkin” the fullest or fastest! You get to have fun with the family plus you get a few extra leaves off the yard all at the same time.
Last year it was much warmer for Halloween so the kids spent almost all their free time outside playing. Only a few days ago we were wearing shorts and it was 80 degrees outside, but with the storm up north the wind has picked up, leaves are raining down on the yard, and there is an extra chill in the air.
Two little pumpkins for my sweet “pumpkins”!
They got these cute little pumpkins from a fall activity we did with a group of friends at a local farm. Since these pumpkins were too small to carve we made delicious Pumpkin Dip and a small batch of Seasoned Pumpkin Seeds!
The girls made these easy “Banana Ghosts” to take in their school lunches!
It was cute hearing them giggle as they put together their little ghosts. We took 1 banana, cut it in half, the girls put a dab of peanut butter (or soy butter) on it, adding raisins for the eyes, stuck a straw in the bottom and put them into bags for their school lunch. The straw was a fun addition because the ghost would “move” (in slow circles) when they held it up which added to the excitement. Sometimes it’s the simple things that you already have in your kitchen that bring the widest smiles!
Family Activities: Fall Festivals
Jake on the spinning teacup with the girls! The last time I went on this ride it made me so sick and dizzy I thought I was going to throw up in one of the girls pumpkins full of Halloween candy!
One of the fun activities our family enjoys participating in every Fall is the local festivals! The girls love getting a chance to go for a ride on carnival rides, hayrides, bouncy castles, check out ambulances, firetrucks, helicopters, pet farm animals and more (for free)! They always have a blast at this event!
Here are a few pictures from one of our favorite fall festivals that we try to go to every year at a local church in our area. Although you do get a bag of candy the highlight is the fun activities (not candy). If you are looking for a safe place to trick or treat for Halloween check to see if any of your local churches do a “Trunk or Treat” event.
Off they go on another ride!
Going UP……..
Jake and the girls flying by me on a chair swing!
Brina flying down the slide!
Karlie zooming down the giant slide!
All of us went on the Thomas the Train ride together!
Checking out the inside of the ambulance!
They had a lot more activities going on that I didn’t get pictures of like face painting, hair glitter, carnival games and more! Do you have fall festivals in your area that your family always looks forward to attending? What type of activities do they have at the festival?
Fresh & Healthy: Lunch Box Meals
Karlie is ready to pack up her lunch!
I found fresh strawberries marked down at the grocery store last week and after picking out 1 bad strawberry the rest were perfect. The girls were excited to get strawberries in their lunch this week for their fruit. 🙂
Lunch Box Meal:
- Peanut Butter & Jelly or Almond Butter & Jelly Sandwiches
- Fresh Strawberries
- Fresh Carrots
- Cashews or Peanuts
- Strawberry Yogurt
- Ritz Cheese Bits or Elf Grahams
- Bugles or Corn Chips
- Whole Grain Crackers
- Cherry Kool-Aid Jammers or Yahoo Chocolate Milk
Fresh strawberries, carrots and more!
The girls are always excited to help with their lunches and they do a great job. This year we have a lot of extra activities going on after school so it has been hard to get all the activities, homework, dinner, baths, lunches made, and everything else done after school so I have been pitching in to help them when it is getting too close to bed time. If they don’t get a chance to pack their lunches before beds they are always eager to find out what is in them. Many times I catch them sneaking a glance in their lunches at breakfast or on the way to school.
Fresh & Healthy: Lunch Box Meals
School lunch is ready!
Today the girls chalkboard note read “You’re the BEST!” A lot of their lunches consist of leftovers from the evening meals together as our family. They love it when they get a roast beef sandwich from the roast we had the night before or something similar.
Lunch Box Meal:
- Roast Beef & Mash Potato Sandwich
- Fresh Grapes
- Fresh Cherry Tomatoes
- Cashews
- Peach Yogurt
- Chocolate & Vanilla Oreos
- Teddy Grahams
- Reduced Sugar Orange or Fruit Punch Juice
Fresh grapes, cherry tomatoes, roast beef sandwich and more!
The girls really do eat most of the items in their lunch bags! I have found that the food I pack them hold them longer than when they eat lunches at school. Part of the reason may be because students that bring lunches get a few extra minutes to eat, plus they can eat any of the leftovers for a snack on the way to our after school activities.
Goodies are ready for the girls to packed up.
Book: “VeggieTales Family Devotional” by Cindy Kenney and Doug Peterson
Our family has recently finished the Veggie Tales Family Devotional by Cindy Kenney and Doug Peterson. The subtitle to this book is “connecting to a powerful relationship with God.” The book has several familiar Veggie Tale characters in it that you kids will recognize if they have ever seen any of the Veggie Tale videos. The book is divided up into 7 parts.
- Part One – Faith
- Part Two – Communication
- Part Three – Love
- Part Four – Trust
- Part Five – Time
- Part Six – Joy
- Part Seven – Holidays
The devotional is for ages 4 to 10. There are 52 devotionals in the book. The book has colorful pictures for the kids to look at while listening. Each devotional has the following:
- Story
- God Connection
- What Does the Bible Say?
- Family Fun Connection
- Cucumber Connection
- Bible Verse
- Think – Link – Act
Our girls loved this devotional book. There were several lessons that inspired more conversations about God, prayer, salvation and more. I know that it is tough with life’s busy schedule to take the extra time to have devotions with our children, but it is my hope and prayer that these lessons and time together will have a lasting impact on the hearts and lives of my children. I can’t say that we do devotions every single night (we are FAR from perfect parents), however, it is something we really try to do with our girls as often as possible because we believe it is important. If you are looking for a new devotional book this is one you might want to check out.
Kids “Welcome” Buckets
Goodies for the kids (nieces, nephew, and our girls)
I love having family come visit us! 🙂 Earlier this year Jake’s sister and her family came to stay with us for a couple weeks. The kids LOVED having extra time playing together.
Before they arrived I picked out some buckets for the kids, put their names on it, and had them ready for their arrival. Every day all five kids got a little toy, items, candy, etc…. in their buckets. As you can see from the picture the first day the kids got their buckets, a new water bottle with their names on it, and marshmallow twist candy.
The kids had a blast checking their buckets every day. Before long the buckets were overflowing with goodies. I had a lot of fun putting together the treats for the kids too!
I am thankful for the opportunity to spend a little extra time with family. It is always fun being able to “spoil” my nieces and nephews for a few days. A lot of great memories were made during their time at our house!
