Forest Fairy Fourth Birthday

Once we said “Goodbye” to Hello Kitty and welcomed the Forest Fairy & Animal Theme, Sara came up with a modest guest list of six girls and six boys ranging in ages 3 to 6. Twelve kids might not sound like a big party but we learned that a dozen kids can be just as wild as thirty when you invite two pairs of rambunctious brothers. HOLY COW (and I say this with deep respect and admiration for the patient parents of these pairs of lovable boys). It was a wild ride but also one very fun and very happy celebration.

One "Forest" Cake complete with blue sprinkle river and white chocolate-dipped pretzel logs...

 

One Fairy Cake complete with fairies playing jump rope and a cougar prowling after a mountain goat. When in doubt about decorating a homemade birthday cake, just add M&Ms and figurines from those great "Toob" play sets  

Anyone with Kindergarten-age boys will know that their sense of humor is blossoming… that’s putting it nicely. In a more direct manner, one might say they are goofy, wild, and loud to the Nth degree. So take this mix of wild boys (mine included), add wild animal masks (provided by me… whoops, didn’t think that through very well) and being relegated indoors (it was horribly cold weather with mixed hail and rain) and you get one super crazy high-volume wrestling match, interrupted only by cake, crafts, and opening presents along the way.

Girl Power still ruled the day. The Birthday Girl and her 5 girlfriends weren’t phased by the testosterone frenzy. They joined in the wild animal play for a bit but it didn’t take long for them to break off and start their own imaginative play in the rooms where I had set up twinkle lights and a bunch of fairy wings and fancy dress-up clothes.

Thanks to both lovely Grandmas, there were plenty of colorful flowers to adorn Spring Nature Crowns and all the kids (both genders) enjoyed making them.

Lots of hugs on Sara's Happy 4th Birthday -- lots of costume changes too. Go back and see how many outfits Sara was able to squeeze into her two hour party - it's impressive!

Tired Party Animals went home with Handmade Animal Masks (inspired by Pinterest, details coming soon), Fairy Wings for the girls (found affordable ones at Party City), and "Pixie Dust Activators" for the boys (light-up version of the classic hand-held magnet- and gravity-driven gyroscope). Everyone had fun and Mommy learned that William's upcoming 6th Birthday needs to be planned outdoors where wild boys can run, jump, wrestle, ninja-kick, and do all the things that wonderfully wild boys do.

Goodbye Kitty

Call me an ogre, call me what you will but I couldn’t help but discourage my girl from having a Hello Kitty birthday party. While she has inherited some pajamas and a t-shirt with the infamous kitty face, there are no Hello Kitty toys in our home and she has never seen a show featuring Hello Kitty... her fascination merely comes from admiration of an older neighbor girl who mentioned she had a Hello Kitty birthday. Sigh… what’s a Crafty Mom to do when her child chooses a theme that Mommy doesn’t want to execute? Well, I guess I would like to execute Hello Kitty but not in the way dear almost-four Sara was thinking…  

Why the Hello Kitty hate? Part of it is that I just don’t get it. Even back in the ‘80s when my little buddies showed off their collections of Hello Kitty eraser tops and mini pens, I wasn’t sure what the big deal was. And more than not “getting it” (I imagine there will be MANY things I won’t relate to in my children’s interests over the years) I suppose the commercialism is what I find so unappealing. I won’t veto a shirt or pjs but a whole party? Really?!

When I mentioned this “birthday dilemma” to my dear Swedish friend (an incredibly kind, intelligent, active, multi-lingual working mom with angelic children, by the way) her suggestion nearly knocked me off my feet. “How about not asking what kind of party they want? When my girls have a birthday, I make a cake; we sing a song and have friends over.” Drat! I should have thought about that a couple years ago, before Sara’s zoo party or William’s superhero party which I got so into, you’d think I was the one turning 5! Yes, I’m afraid I’ve done this to myself, creating the perfect storm for high expectations on birthdays… but hey, it’s what I like to do so as long as it’s not Hello Kitty, I’m on board!

My sneaky phase one of the Hello Kitty eradication began with talking about how much fun she had up at the Veterinarian Clinic at the Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett. “Remember how you got to care for all types of animals in the Vet Clinic? Instead of just focusing on Kitties, wouldn’t it be fun to have a party featuring a mix of animals?” I asked innocently? Sara pondered this thoughtfully. “How about forest animals? Then we can make a big chocolate cake with trees and animals on it” I continued. My last suggestion finally sealed the deal:  “We could make it even more fun if we did forest animals AND forest fairies, how about that?” SOLD! Even though it was a huge mouthful that Sara could hardly remember when inviting friends to her party, my girl was totally on board for her Forest Animal and Forest Fairy 4^th Birthday Party!    Party Details complete with animal masks and fairy wings coming soon…

The Wisdom of Daddy: Creative Excursions

It’s amazing what happens when I’m out of the picture and my husband has the kids an entire day or over a weekend. Some of the activities he comes up with are downright brilliant.

Most recently, he took the kids to Oak Creek Wildlife Viewing Area in Naches, Washington. “Huh? Where is that?” You ask? My thoughts exactly…  but boy was I surprised when they returned with great pictures, interesting facts, and lively stories.

Rocky Mountain Elk are the main attraction at this Wildlife Area (though you can go to another part to see Bighorn Sheep as well) and all it takes is a Washington State Discover Pass and calling (509) 653-2390 in advance to make a reservation if you want to take a guided truck tour (these tours are also available on a first-come first-serve basis but it's worth it to make a reservation if you can). As long as you're willing to head to Eastern Washington (near Yakima) in January or February and don't mind waiting around in the cold a bit, you're almost guaranteed to see Elk... and I'm talking about a LOT of Elk, and many with enormous antlers.

These Elk roam in from the neighboring mountains in search of food and apparently there can be up to 1,200 of these massive mammals at the feeding station at a time. Almost 100 miles of 8-foot-high fence was built in the 1940s to keep the Elk from devouring the acres of orchards in this region and every Winter this feeding station supplements the Elks' diet.

Even with two tour jeeps carrying curious folks in to get a closer look, a decent effort is made to keep a respectful distance from these still very wild animals. However, some of the Elk are just as curious as the visitors so there is a chance of up-close viewing. The male bull Elk with their enormous antlers can actually be very territorial (meaning aggressive) so it is essential to follow the rules while visiting.

The free tour even came with a big button displaying an Elk (but please don't call it a button, my kids are quite certain it is a very special badge).

Signs of Spring

Bees were buzzing and birds were singing. A few days of sunshine was all it took to get our tulips and daffodils peeking out of the ground.

Naturally, it is blustery and cold now but those lovely days a couple weeks back were a welcome preview of Spring just around the corner.

We spent as much time outside as possible, soaking up all the Vitamin D our bodies could absorb. In honor of the seasonal burst of color we'll experience soon, I set up a rainbow variation of a classic baking soda and vinegar science experiment for the kids.

The kids helped set everything up, scooping four piles of baking soda onto their trays while I prepared the jars of vinegar and food coloring

I was pleasantly surprised to see them adding small amounts of liquid at a time and observing the reaction closely. William even commented that the bubbles left behind holes like craters

But after a while Sara decided that using one dropper at a time just wasn't enough...

Without any interference from me, this beautiful mess appeared on William's tray

Everything is more fun when you can do it outside

Unable to resist the urge for instant springtime, I bought a Costco-sized flat of primroses (notice their pretty little heads in the background of the last photo above).

I'm so glad I took a few pictures of their colorful heads because this is what they looked like the following morning.

Chomp

I would have suspected our resident banana slugs (we grow 'em big out here) or the little cotton tailed bunny we've seen hopping into the salmon berry brambles recently but when I counted that 12 primroses been chomped to smithereens and a few had even been uprooted from their comfy holes, the evidence unmistakably led to deer. Note to self:  just because you don't see the deer around very often them doesn't mean they aren't visiting you and patiently waiting for your next pretty flower to bloom.

The Adventures of Art Lady: Kindergartners and Sticks

No, this isn’t a story about sword fights (though I have to admit I was nervous about that happening), it’s a story about making Garden Art Sticks with a group of fifteen 5- and 6-year olds.

I found this idea on this wonderful blog and thought it would be a great project for our Kindergarten class to make for the school's bi-annual auction.

My dear adventurous Mother, affectionately known as Cuckoo Grandma by my children, gathered a bundle of shapely beach sticks already smooth from being tossed in the ocean and sand. Once they were completely dry (let them sit in the dry place a few weeks), I painted them with a couple coats of white acrylic primer. After that, they were ready to cart to the school Art Room and let the kids slather on bright acrylic paints however they desired.

Here is how they looked after the first step:

And here is how they turned out!

The kids did such a great job. They seemed to take extra care since this was something special to raise money for their school. It was a bit messy but everyone did their best and I love how their Art Sticks turned out. Here are a few shots from my lesson that day:

Yes, getting more and more messy but most kids wore aprons

...except for this one

I was concerned that parents would be upset if their kids came home with stained clothes (acrylic paint doesn't wash out). As I was looking through photos from the lesson, I realized it was only my dear boy freely wiping his painted fingers onto shirt and pants... oops

"Look Mom, I put on an apron," after he was done... The ladies still love my little guy--this particular friend likes him so much she painted a spot of his hair blue (and he liked it). Kindergarten rocks.

Unplugging.... almost

Nothing like a power outage to get us thinking about unplugging...

It started innocently enough, back when I was desperate for 30 minutes to throw dinner together, I’d let my 3- and 5- year olds watch Curious George. Then PBS changed their programming and George was no longer airing when I was prepping dinner so a handful of DVDs were introduced. Along came pleads of “come on, can we watch just one more, Momma?”  Thirty minutes quickly became an hour, then eventually turned into about 90 minutes of screen time before dinner.

The computer counts as "screen time" too, look at those zoned out eyes...

No, they don't stand this close to watch TV... they were posing for me

While the television was on, I’d spend that hour and a half picking things up around the house, washing dishes, drying and putting them away, doing laundry, checking email and surfing the web, choosing something to cook, setting the table then I finally dive into the business of making dinner. Dinner still only took about half an hour to make, but I sheepishly realized that the kid’s 90 minutes of television had actually become something I looked forward to. This didn’t feel right.

Did I think these 90 minutes a day were going to ruin my 3 and 5 year-old children? No. Did I think it’s wrong to allow kids to watch a limited amount of age-appropriate shows? No.  I am aware, however, that what was once a tool for me became a crutch. And what was once a treat for the kids became a daily expectation.

What didn’t feel right about an hour or more television was how the kids wouldn’t acknowledge Daddy if he arrived home from work while the TV was still on. Not even a quick “hi” or glance away from the screen… nice homecoming, eh? Worst of all was the kids’ irritable mood once the TV was turned off and it was time to come to dinner (more evening fun for Daddy and all of us for that matter). Their moans and groans made their words so unintelligible that I’m still not sure what they were unhappy about. 

Actually, I don’t think they were unhappy about anything. I think their brains had gone into sleep mode from too much TV. Naturally, they came away feeling tired and cranky. This television-induced state can’t be good for brain development and it certainly wasn’t good for family dynamics.

So what’s a Mom to do? Had we gone too far down this road to turn around? Of course I knew we hadn’t but I felt serious trepidation about how evenings with little to no TV would go. Would dinner ever make it to the table? How many scuffles would I have to break up? How many more messes would be created in the process of keeping them happily occupied while I prepared dinner?

So how would we go about making this change? Faking a broken TV was my first idea. Cowardly, I know, but I could just pull the plug and it would be my little secret. Who’s going to argue with “I called the repair company but they can’t get a technician out here for another few days?”

Instead, I decided that a sincere discussion was the right thing to do. One night at dinner I mentioned to the kids that I noticed how grumpy they were after watching TV before dinnertime. I shared my theory about how sitting in front of the TV makes your brain almost go to sleep so it’s no wonder they felt tired and awful when they had to get up. There were no threats of completely unplugging the TV but I did say that I thought it was too much and we should start experimenting to find the perfect amount.

Do you know what? Those little geniuses agreed with me! As much as Mom and Dad didn’t like hearing their whines and complaints, the kids didn’t like feeling so crummy! More discussion followed about what is important to each of us and we brainstormed about more worthwhile ways to spend our time instead of watching television.

Now, on most days we’re back to just a quick half hour show in the early evening. I use that time to get organized but the TV is off well before Dad returns home and they have a chance to shake off the tired state that even 30 minutes can induce.  The kids are back to helping me peel, slice, pour and stir the various components of dinner which is more fun for all of us. Making such a conscious effort with the kids inspired the grown-ups to keep the TV off after kids are in bed too and we're both enjoying good books instead of watching another episode or American Choppers or Gold Rush (yes, my husband is was a Discovery Channel fan and I was a willing bystander). Recovery feels great.

A Storm Like No Other

Transformed into frozen sculptures, every tree, plant, pinecone, bush, and basically all things outdoors were encased in a thick layer of ice. Tips of trees that once stood 40 feet tall were touching the ground as the weight of the ice bent them so severely.

Star Magnolia buds

Japanese Maple

I still can't believe that this very tall Paper Birch didn't snap under the pressure of all the ice

Barberry

 

The effect was stunning, really remarkable and like nothing I’ve seen before in the Pacific Northwest. While it was lovely to observe, it also proved to be extremely destructive. Our power was out for two days and thousands were out for longer. 

Lucky to have a gas hot water heater, gas stove top, gas fireplace, and plenty of candles, we did just fine during the blackout. Large quantities of hot chocolate and "winter warmers" (William's latest concoction of warmed milk + cinnamon + vanilla + sugar) were consumed. Even Mommy got her coffee fix after digging my little Italian stovetop espresso maker deep from a cupboard.

So happy for the chance to use his camping lantern

Cocoa by candlelight

William and his Winter Warmer drink

MANY games were played while we were bundled in blankets and warmed our toes by the fire. Cranium's Balloon Lagoon (out of print but available at lots of second hand stores) was our favorite.