A snowball fight…in Las Vegas

Yesterday there was snow on the mountains and the other side of town got snow. Alex has been asking for snow so I was disappointed that we didn’t get any. Today has been rainy. My mom called after she saw a news report about snow in Las Vegas, I looked out the window and to my surprise the rain turned to snow! Alex and I immediately got ready and went out. He had a blast running back and forth through the snow.





When Frank got home Alex and I headed out back where some snow accumulated on his toys and we had a snowball fight. When my fingers got cold I traded off with Frank. Alex had mittens, but unfortunately the wetness soaked through and when he came in he was in pain. We’ll have to get him some better gloves.

Marie-Anne

Old Mormon Fort

We went to the Old Mormon Fort’s Pioneer Christmas on Friday. We heard there wasn’t much to the Old Mormon Fort, but it was only $2 for the whole family and it was something we could do after Frank got off work. The museum was small, but nice- I enjoyed it although Alex was in no mood to just slowly look, so I didn’t get to read much. We went outside to the Civil War era soldiers. I think Frank and I were more impressed than Alex was. The soldier we talked to gave us a lot of information about the weapons used during the Civil War. We saw Christmas trees decorated, as they would have been in the pioneer days. We watched a lady basket weaving and had some cobbler. It was fun.

Marie-Anne

Parents Visit

We really enjoyed Frank’s parent’s visit. It was the first time they got to meet the new addition to our family! Also, they helped us usher in the Holiday Season: we put up the Christmas tree with them and baked holiday goodies like Snowballs, Chocolate balls, and pumpkin bread. Alva and I left the kids with the guys and went shopping for kitchen appliances, one such item is awesome: a chopper, a device you put food in and it chops the food up. We went to “Famous Dave’s” barbecue restaurant, and on the last day of the trip, we went to the Shark Reef. The Shark Reef a gigantic indoor aquarium that is really cool.

Alex enjoyed showing off his toys and having someone new to play with. I was sad to see them go. I love the chopper!

Guess what I am!

Guess What I Am! I saw this game advertised today and I love it. I went to the website:

http://www.guesswhatiamgame.com/

I am planning on buying this for my children and also for my brother’s kids. This is a game that I will enjoy playing with Alex and Sabrina, (when she’s old enough). It’s silly fun and think of the great scrapbook page you can make using the faces! This will make for a great family night!

Marie-Anne

Tuna Casserole

Here’s a twist on my grandma’s tuna casserole. Even Alex asks for seconds.

Regular potato chips
2 cans tuna
1 can sweet peas
2-3 cans mushroom soup
2 cans mushrooms

Crush chips in bottom of casserole dish. Drain and pour sweet peas, tuna, and mushrooms spreading them out. Cover with mushroom soup making sure to completely cover. Cook for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Marie-Anne

Hooked on Phonics works for Alex!

Alex is starting to read using Hooked on Phonics for kindergarten. In one day he was reading the words of that lesson. He is about to start the third lesson and already has read the two short stories that go with the lessons. After the next lesson Alex will read his first book! I have not been using the CD, just the workbook. We have used letter magnets and I just got two packs of letter foam tiles, (88 cents at Wal-Mart) to make it more interesting. Today we handed Alex the letters of the first lesson and told him what words to spell and he got them all right, until he started being silly.

Teaching Alex to read was one of my main concerns when we started homeschool, but using Hooked on Phonics has made it so easy. I do recommend Hooked on Phonics. It is available at our library and may be at yours if you want to try it. I bought the complete set kindergarten to second grade for $40 at Big Lots.

Marie-Anne

Children's museum with mom

Today is Alex’s b-day, but that’s not why we went to the Children’s Museum. We went so my mom could enjoy spending time with her grandson that she doesn’t get to see that often. This was Alex’s third time to go there, but mom’s first. Sabrina slept the whole time until right before we left. We took lots of pictures to go into his scrapbook and she videoed him playing.

Alex looks through his scrapbook over and over and relives the events and memories of the time spent with people. It’s a way of helping him stay close to family members who live far away.

After Frank got off work we went out to eat at Famous Dave’s (YUM!) and we had them sing happy b-day to Alex.

Marie-Anne

Small Changes for a healthier me

~ No eating after 9 pm

~ Drink water after 9 pm

~ When doing errands pack a water and fruit for me

~ Walk around the neighborhood a couple times a day

~ Wear ankle weights

~ Instead of going to McDonalds on shopping days pack a lunch and go to the park

~ Spend 10 minutes a day walking up and down the stairs

~ Snack on fruit rather than junk food (most of the time)

~ Cook and eat at home more often

~ Use hand weights daily

Marie-Anne

Life with a new baby

Life sure is different around here. That’s an understatement. We are adjusting to having a baby around. Alex loves his little sister, but sometimes resents the time we spend with her. We are going from having one child who can do a lot of things for himself to having someone who depends on us for everything and having to meet Alex’s needs also. Sabrina is so cute, but I think she’s much cuter during the day than at 3 am. I am thankful that my mom is here- she’s a great help. We are blessed.

Marie-Anne

Happy 4th b-day Alex!

We celebrated Alex’s b-day today. Mom, Alex, Sabrina, and I went to Toys R Us and she got him almost the rest of the imaginext city toys plus the helicopter. I got him the police horse. Tonight we (Alex, Sabrina, Frank, mom, and I) went to Peter Piper Pizza. Alex had a blast! He almost forgot he had more gifts. Alex also got a couple of shirts, a pair of pants, a Thomas book, a mirror, and a model solar system from Frank’s parents. He got a talking fire fighter helmet from Jennifer. From us he got a construction magnet set, a drill, and some Bob the Builder toys and books.

Marie-Anne

Fisher Price Imaginext

Alex got a gift card for being in the Toys R Us b-day club. He chose the imaginext fire fighters. Alex loves fire fighters- he is one after all. We later went back and got him the fire station set for a becoming a big brother gift. My mom bought him almost the rest of the city set for his b-day. I love these toys almost as much as Alex does. We will probably get him the last few in this set for Christmas. Of course he also wants all the other sets, but he can’t have everything he wants.

Marie-Anne

Shots hurt

Shots hurt- no duh, right? When it is your child they don’t just hurt the one getting them. Alex got his 4-year-old shots today. He got 5 shots and had blood taken from his finger. He was already scared before we got there. When the nurse pricked his finger he sobbed, “God, heal me!” I had to hold him down and even then he came off the table twice. Alex was so upset that several times on the way home he would burst into tears and tell me how mean the doctor was to him. I’m glad he doesn’t have to get them that often.

Marie-Anne

It's a Girl!

Sabrina Marie Rendla was born at 5:06PM Wednesday, November 5th 2008. She was a whopping 9lb 10oz of healthy baby. Mother and child are doing fine.

Induced

Sabrina Marie Rendla is scheduled to be induced on Wednesday November 5th, unless of course, she makes her grand debut before then. Poor baby isn’t even born yet and already I’m impatient with her: HURRY UP, SABRINA!!! I’m tired of being pregnant.

Marie-Anne

Collage idea

Tonight I was cutting out some cute pictures in one of the workbooks Alex already did to make a cover for his farm lapbook. Alex came in and started telling me where to glue everything so I cut out some extra for him to make a collage. He is having a blast making that! From now on instead of just throwing the workbooks away when we are done I will cut out the cute pictures so he can make collages any time he wants.

Marie-Anne

Saving on birthdays and Christmas

I shop for b-days and Christmas throughout the year. When I find toys that Alex wants or would love on clearance I get them without him knowing. Right now I have 3 sets of Bob the Builder tools that I got for less than $6 each and a Bob the Builder truck that I got for a dollar cheaper, among other things.

I also get the b-day party stuff, (plates, cups, table cloths…) on clearance or from the dollar store. Several times throughout the year I go to the party store just to see what they have and if anything that Alex would like is on sale or clearance. Last year I got Bob the Builder stuff for a dollar each on clearance. (Since it was just family for his b-day last year I’ll reuse the Bob the Builder stuff next year.) For this b-day I got dinosaur stuff from the dollar store and some more on clearance at the party store. Well, I planned to use the dinosaur stuff this b-day, but Alex asked for firefighter decorations. So hopefully I’ll be able to find some on sale.

How do you save on b-days and Christmas gifts?

Marie-Anne

Preschool websites

Alex has discovered preschool websites. He loves Barney, Thomas the Tank Engine, Bob the Builder, Clifford, Sesame Street, and fire fighter websites. He asks to be online 2-3 times a day. He is pretty good at most of the preschool games. He has fun and is learning at the same time. The bad thing is he usually throws fits when it’s time to get off.

More on lapbooks

We have completed 5 lapbooks and are working on the 6th. Since Alex is only 3 they are pretty simple using things like connect the dots, mazes, worksheets, coloring pages, and simple experiments. Alex loves making these and he shows them off to guests. Several have games included and he loves to play the games. We have done one on Rainbows, Nutrition, Ocean Animals, Zoo Animals, Knights and are currently working on Farms. Along with each lapbook we watch kid documentaries, check out websites on the subject, and read books.

Marie-Anne

Baby shower at church

Sunday was the baby shower and potluck at church. It was a lot of fun! We had over 30 people there and everyone had a good time. We got a beautiful baby swing, a bouncer, bottles, clothes, diapers, wipes, pacifiers, a beautiful blanket one lady made, toys… Everyone was so sweet. We brought Alex a big brother gift of a couple toys and a book about becoming a big brother. Not too much longer!

Marie-Anne

Baby Shower at Frank's job

Today was the baby shower at Frank’s work. It was wonderful and a lot of fun. One lady made a beautiful and yummy cake. We got so many things for Sabrina that I couldn’t list them all. We got a Pack N Play, Diaper Genie, high chair, baby bathtub, clothes, gift cards, rattles, bowls, hooded bunny towel, diapers, wipes, swaddlers… One lady made an absolutely adorable rag doll that I’ll keep for Sabrina’s kids when she outgrows it. Another lady made a beautiful sweater, bonnet, and booties set.

Alex wasn’t forgotten either. He was the life of the party in his fire fighter costume. We got him a toy pump action fire hose that’s made like a backpack. He also got two puzzles and a fire truck that makes sounds and came with a fire fighter.

(On the way home we visited a church member who gave us a crib.) Isn’t God great?

Marie-Anne