Misc. Summer Activities

New Post

Love Justin's zebra!

Ryan and I did a shape hunt and he was able to take pictures of different shapes he found in the house.  He, like many children, loves to use a camera!  Sometimes he would use my iphone, but we also got him a durable vetch kid's camera that has been great. 

Circle from the shape hunt

and obviously squares.

Bubbles are always so much fun for kids to play with.  You can buy them or make your own.  My boys enjoy chasing the bubbles too, so this battery operated bubble blower made it easier to produce bubbles faster.

Riding bikes is also a good way to get the boys out and about.  I got tired running beside Ryan when we would go around the block.  Amazing how things aren't as level as they seem when you aren't chasing a child who forgets to use brakes as he approaches a parked car.

Ryan wanted to paint or stain the fence, which obviously isn't the best thing to have a child his age do.  Using water to do the job was just as much fun for him though.

Water is a hit!  Ryan is already looking forward to using Grandma's hose next summer when we visit.  It wasn't even a super hot day that day.  It doesn't seem to have slowed him down though.

Before we left we went to a couple of museums.  Water play is popular with Justin too.

Justin absolutely loved making flying contraptions out of water cooler paper cones and watching them fly when placed over a fan.  He got some pretty good ones.  Would be so easy to do with a box fan on its side and possibly something (even posterboard) wrapped around it so kids don't get their fingers too close and be tempted to stick fingers in by the blades.

September 2012

The big news for September?  Justin started kindergarten!  It is only a half day program here in Idaho so we still get plenty of time with him at home.  Ryan misses him, but the mornings go by pretty quickly.  Here he is on the first day of school.

Ryan does enjoy some alone time with Mommy.  Here he is riding around the block while I run beside him.  There are quite a few ups and downs that I don't really notice when I walk.  Somehow they are much more noticeable when I am pulling him along or slowing him down.

The boys both got the chance to play soccer.  Ryan did pretty well.  Unfortunately, when other kids would start to have separation anxiety he would join in.

Justin with the ball!  He has two practices a week plus games.  It gets old fast for me, but hey.

This playground is quite close to my parents' house.  Ryan and I spent an entire morning here while Justin was in school one morning.  Ryan loved it, but of course Justin was jealous when he found out.  We even got to see fire fighters practicing with their hoses.  One came over and gave us some stickers.

Of course why play on the playground when you can walk on rocks?  My boys can always find something to do.

I said it was too cold to go swimming, but that doesn't stop us from getting wet.

The boys take a rest at a table along the world's longest boardwalk.

Ryan was "helping" my mom to clean things.  He decided that his job involved filling up things with water and pouring the water somewhere else.  Many containers were filled, including his shoes.  It is amazing how much fun kids can have with water.

Justin got to help my dad stain the ladder.  He had so much fun with the project.  The quality of his work was questionable, but his method was quite entertaining.  I don't know if anyone has ever danced around so much painting a ladder.

The marbles were left out on the floor and Justin couldn't resist sorting them.  Ice cube trays are so much for for a lot of different things.

Leaves colored Fall colors and sequenced from largest to smallest.  Ryan's cutting isn't exactly on the lines yet, but that's okay.

The boys had so much fun this month with Tinkertoys.  They even enjoyed playing bird family with the big red plastic part stuck on a stick making up a bird.  There were various family members, but usually a Little Sis.  They boys made all sorts of swings, beds, forts, boats, and more for Little Sis.