Giant Water Bug

This giant bug was in the water table in our backyard. It is about an inch and a half long and I was so shocked when I saw it. I didn't know we had such big bugs in this part of the world.

Excercising with Your Kids

So I'm curious. Do you exercise with your kids?

Candy Spinal Column Model

We made these candy spinal columns as part of our Human Body science unit last year.

Newborn Fingernails

These are the fingernails of my 6th right after she was born. They are so long!

Water Table

What a fun outdoor activity in the summer!

Unfinished Basement

I hope your basement doesn't look like ours!

Anthill in a Jar

Last year, we made an anthill in a jar. It was pretty neat to see them tunnel around and see the eggs appear all clustered together.

Monopoly Junior

We have the game Monopoly and our kids ask to play it often, but it is very difficult for them to play because they are too young. So we finally went out and purchased the game Monopoly Junior. 

I wasn't sure what to expect. Would the original game be lost in a dumbed down version? Would it still be fun? I was blown away by how great of a game it is! I almost like it better than the original!

Bedrooms are Full

The house we bought last summer is full. It has three bedrooms so we have one, the two babies have the other and the four oldest have the last bedroom. 

Raspberry Planter

My husband built this beautiful planter for raspberries in our backyard last summer.

Bouncy House

Maybe this is a bit extreme for winter fun, but we have a bouncy house.

Graham Cracker Gingerbread Houses

My oldest is always asking to make gingerbread houses. Instead of cake for his 8th birthday, we made gingerbread houses. I have a great cut out for a gingerbread house, but we are far more likely to go with graham cracker houses. 

Camping with Young Children

Camping with little kids is no picnic!

This picture was from 2 years ago when we went for a 5 week camping trip to the west coast and back with our five children- our youngest was 5 months old. 

So I know camping season is pretty much over, but I thought I'd better put in some tips here while I was thinking of it.

Applesauce and Apple Pie

A friend of mine gave me a bucket of apples. They were beautiful rosy little apples. It was time consuming to cut and core them all because they were so small, but it was so worth it.

I successfully made three bags of applesauce and a pie with two thirds of the bucket and finished off the rest of the bucket with two more bags of applesauce and another pie two days later.

Sushi Rolls

Our family loves sushi! When my husband and I were newly married we had some friends who taught me how to make my own and I am so grateful because it has become a staple in our house. My kids have even told me how much they prefer my homemade sushi to the sushi we've had in restaurants and I'm glad because it is so much cheaper, but it totally is not anything super complicated or extravagant. 

Teacher's Planner

I wanted to share this Teacher's Planner that my husband surprised me with this year. I am loving it! 

Freezing Soups

As the days get colder, I find myself looking forward to a nice warm soup. Plus, there is a lot of produce coming out of the garden that I need to use or get into the freezer so making big pots of soup and freezing it is a great use for it.