Dinner for tonight

I am all about eating healthier and easier this new years!  :)  Just went grocery shopping today and we are all stocked up!  Here is our dinner tonight! 

Here is the chicken recipe I used tonight!
http://forkinit.blogspot.com/2010/09/crockpot-barbecue-chicken.html

Yummy biscuits!
http://forkinit.blogspot.com/2010/09/cheddar-and-herb-biscuits.html

We'll add grilled asparagus for our veggie! 

Thanksgiving Shirts

We made Thanksgiving shirts this year! 

Advent Day 1 and 2

I'm gonna try my best to keep up with this every day or two!  (: 

Here is the advent calendar that we are doing this year!  We punched out envelopes at the IMC and I traced the numbers 1-25 and Cameron traced them.  I'm not sure where I found these but we printed and laminated these great cards that have a project that we can do each day. 

 Day 2

I'll post the finished reindeer product tomorrow.

Here is our Santa game!  We used chocolate chips. 

We wrapped 25 Christmas books and each day Cam picks a book out to unwrap!

Felt Snakes

I can't remember where I saw this but we made our own.  I finished them after Cameron was in bed so we'll see what he thinks of them tomorrow.  I think I'll bring them to school and see how the kids like them.  If they use them then I'll make some to keep at school too!

Cameron picked out the ribbon and I had buttons and felt at home. 

We made a large button one and small button one.

Here is our large button ones.  We made one with a button on each end and one with a loop at the end.

We cut out all different kinds of felt. 

Here is my small button one.

Here is the way it will look when you start making your snake.  You can button as many pieces of felt that you want.

Cameron was in bed when I finished these so I'll post pictures with him working on his snakes soon.  I think I'm going to bring them to school too! 

Fall playdough

We made playdough tonight!!  Thanks Rachel for reminding me to make new playdoh!  (:  We didn't use any coloring; I wanted it to be more of a dough color with sprinkles of apple pie spice added in.  However, I got a little carried away with the spice mix and it turned out to be a little more brown than I wanted.  Oh well, it was a learning experience. 

Since we made our playdoh with apple pie spice we brought out some apple supplies.  We collected some sticks from outside, an apple cookie cutter, some little apples (they were REALLY hard to find, Cam also added pears and little berries too) and a pie tin.  I'd really like to get a little pie tin too but I haven't been to the store.  Once I do, I'll get a little pie tin to make apple and pear pies. 

Cam had the idea to make a pear impression.  I love when kids use their imaginations!! 

Cameron was making me pies!

I LOVE making playdough!!

Check out these sunflowers!

We planted sunflowers that we grew from seeds on the side of the house and they are CRAZY!! 

Here's Cam standing next to one of them.

I love sunflowers!  I can't wait for this one to dry out so I can bring it to school for the kids to pick the seeds!  (:

Here are some other pictures of them! 

I don't want Cameron to go to school full time!  I love just spending time with him.  Here we are being silly!  (:

Friday was a beautiful day and Cameron really wanted to go in the pool!!  Since we've got the heater now I let him!  It was 73 degrees before the heater and 93 after. 

What Cam wants for Christmas

Cam is 4 and doesn't get that money does not grow on trees and you don't need EVERY SINGLE TOY THAT HE SEES!!!!  I know this is a hard concept.  Heck, I still want every shoe, purse, electronic, outfit, toy, etc that I see!  (:  He really, really, really wants this Big Foot from Fisher Price. 

Yay, we really, really, really don't need Big Foot!  However, I'm sure he will get it for Christmas (:  Shhhh, don't tell him! 

Last week Cameron wanted to buy a different toy and I told him no because he didn't have the money for it.  He ran upstairs and I heard him dumping out all of his money from his Buzz Lightyear bank.  He yelled from the top of the stairs that we can go now because he's got money.  I went upstairs and saw quite a few coins but I knew it wouldn't be enough.  We counted his money and he had about $15 (the toy he wanted was $35).  I told him that he didn't have enough but he could keep saving for it.  He got really excited, jumped up and ran out of the room.  He came back a couple minutes later with a hand full of change, I asked him where he got the money from.  He smiled and said, "I got it from Kait's room, that's where I get all of my money!"  (:  I smiled to myself, there was NO WAY that I was letting him know that I thought he was pretty quick to think of that.  We talked about how we can't just take things from Kait's room and that we have to ask.  I told him to put the money back in Kait's room and he could ask her when she came home if he could have some money from her room.  He relucantly brought back the money but not before telling me that it was okay that he would just go to Anthony's room......I had to explain that he couldn't take money from ANYONE'S room.  Well.....Chris heard this whole conversation, came in and told Cameron if he picked up pinecones in the backyard he would take him to get his toy.  He explained that you have to work for your money.  This was a good lesson if Chris hadn't made him pick up 10 pine cones for the rest of the money ($20).  WOW, I'll pick up pine cones for that kind of money!  (:  Cam and Chris brought his change (only what was already in his bank) to the bank traded it out and Cameron got to buy his toy. 

Yesterday, Cameron went to Chris and told him that he would go pick up pine cones and they could go to the store and buy Big Foot (he's $100).  I intervened and told him OH NO, Big Foot is a Christmas or Birthday toy, not a pinecone picking up toy!!  Chris gave me a look and said he's trying to work for his money and I promply put my foot down (STOMPED it down) and said NO WAY!  Well, today Cameron kept asking me to check his bank and see how much he had (I'm not sure where he got this change from????) so I told him that we would make a chart and when he added money to his bank (this was also my way of finding out where he was getting this money.  Hey, this is my 3rd kid, I'm no dummy!)  we would mark it off. 
Here's the chart we made to keep track of his money.  It isn't fancy or anything but it serves our purpose. 

I'm making Cam write his name on everything as you can see.  I could only make 62 lines that's why it only goes up to $62.00, I didn't plan ahead well.  Like I said this was spur of the moment. 

Chris brought some change home for Cameron.  He quickly had to put it in his bank.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

I LOVE Chicka Chicka Boom Boom books!!  We are going to do a lot more about Chicka Chicka Boom Boom ABC at school.  I will post what we do with that over at sunshinemountainpreschool.blogspot.com.  I wanted to make a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom number tree with Cameron.  He hasn't wanted to make crafts much lately but I keep trying!!  (:  I LOVE making crafts and doing art projects with him. 

I'd like to start making more handprint art projects!  We made a flower tree with handprints at Stay 'n Play  last spring.   I'll post a picture soon!

Yesterday, we decided to make a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Number Tree.  I traced around Cameron's hands and cut out his hands out of green paper.  You can always let your child try to trace and cut out their hands depending on age and how much they like cutting.  We were going to use paint but it would have taken too long to dry and I had his attention for only so long!!  (: 

Cameron cut out his own trunk of the tree.  I drew the lines and he cut it out. 

We glued our trunk and leaves on the tree. 

Cameron got to put "coconuts" on his tree.  These are just round stickers.  You could cut out construction coconuts and glue them on too.  Gluing the tree trunk and leaves were enough for Cam!  You can see that he put his leaves wherever he wanted on his tree.  His project, he can do what he wants!  (:  I am a firm believer that the children should make their project the way that they want, even if I have to tie my hands behind my back because I'd like it my way.  Sometimes it's hard not to fix or turn or correct the project so it looks the "right" way but if this is truly the child's art project let them do it their own way.   

I could have punched out numbers but decided to go the sticker route again.  I found some different number stickers and he told me the number and then put it on his tree. 

Here's our finished tree!  He did a GREAT job!!  (: