Kid's Play Fridge

For Christmas, I made a play stove for my son and got him some play food. He likes to pretend to cook while I'm making dinner. Grandma got him more play food.

He had all that play food, but no place to put it. So, it only seemed fitting that I design a fridge! I started with a tall box. This box is from our swimming pool and is really thick cardboard.

I cut a door in the front with a 1-ish inch edge around 3 sides. I cut it all the way to the left edge so it opens at the fold. I had another box to use for the shelves. I cut the shelves out of the sides of the box and cut slits in the big box. 

The shelves stick out just a bit from the slits. I taped them down. For one of the shelves I tried a different approach. You can see the cardboard sticking out of the side. I cut a longer piece of cardboard, put it in, folded it, and taped it down. Not sure which shelf is better. They both seem to be holding up just fine and after I was done you could not see the bulge of the extra cardboard.

 I made a handle out of cardboard as well and used Velcro on the handle and the box to keep the door closed. You can see the handle hangs over the edge of the fridge door so the Velcro touches. I have 3 shelves in the fridge. 

Next, I wanted to make the fridge pretty, so I got some butcher paper. The kid picked red. I used packaging tape, which is a little shiny, but got the job done. 

I used gray cardstock/scrapbooking paper for the handle. I'm OK with leaving the shelves the way they are, but if you plan to do this project you may want to paint or decorate them before you put them in. 

Here is the masterpiece, with the door closed and open. The red box on the 3rd shelf there is perfect because it slides out a bit and can store a lot of play food. I am thinking of adding some sort of shelf to the door, like real refrigerators have, but haven't come up with the design for that yet. The fridge is really sturdy and my Little Chef just loves to play with it! 

-Me and my Hunny Bunny

Sorting Activities

My 3 year-old has really been into sorting lately. Being a kindergarten teacher, I love it too! Here are some of the fun sorting activities we've done this summer.

We made a cute and colorful button sorter out of a cardboard egg carton. I put a squirt of paint in each section and gave him a different brush for each color. I let him swirl the paint around. After it dried I gave him the bucket of buttons and let him sort by color. We could also sort other things, like colored noodles or pom poms. I will probably make a few more and take them to school for my new kindergartners. Instead of them all being color though, I could make one with dots (number of button holes perhaps), or shapes. I love the Frog and Toad book where Frog helps Toad find his lost button.

My Hunny Bunny loves playing with his animals. I gave him a container of water to play with. He asked "Does the ___ live in the water?" about each animal. Only the ocean creatures would go in the water. He was very curious about where the other animals live, so we created a few other habitats.

I gave him some sand for a desert. The farm was purchased last summer at Goodwill because of it's mechanisms. I took it apart and showed my Robotics class the gears. It's perfect for the cow, duck, chickens, and his favorite-the pig. We made the jungle/forest out of a shoe box, toilet paper roll, construction paper, yarn, and a rock from our yard. He likes acting out the animals in their homes. It was pretty funny when I looked over to see the shark on the farm. "Ah, what is the shark doing on the farm?"
"He is eating the sheep!"


We also have some sorting apps. Of course the tech teacher has her son play educational apps on a tablet! Tiny Hands Sorting 2 and 3 are some of his favorite apps on "the game". That's what he calls the tablet. We downloaded the 2 apps and I upgraded one for $2.99, which in my opinion, is worth it for this very well made app. You sort by shape and size (see picture on bottom right), color (picture on bottom left) animal groups, number of dots, color combinations, instruments, professions, and so much more. Click here to get Tiny Hands Sorting 2 and here for Tiny Hands Sorting 3. 

When it's time to clean up, we sort some more! He has a bucket for blocks, characters, trains, tracks, letters, shoes, and 2 buckets for cars (one is just for the Disney Cars, like Lightning McQueen). This shelf is really essential so the toys don't take over the house! And if something doesn't "go" somewhere, it disappears...don't tell the kid.

There's room in our ottoman for some toys, like instruments and dinosaurs. I am working on a play refrigerator for all his play food, so stay tuned for that blog! Until then, sort on!

-Me and my Hunny Bunny

Muppet Party

For his 3rd birthday, my little Hunny Bunny wanted a Muppet theme. We listen to Muppet songs in the car all the time. His favorite songs include "Am I am Man, or am I a Muppet", "It's Not Easy Bein' Green", and "Share it Maybe". His favorite character is Kermit. For awhile, no one else was allowed to like Kermit the best. Only him. He kept asking me who I liked the best and he would get really mad when I said "Kermit". "No, you like Fozzie the best", he would shout. Ah, the joys of arguing with a toddler. We own The Muppets (2011 movie with Amy Adams and Jason Segal) and we went to see The Muppets Most Wanted in theaters before his big day. Here he is on the morning of his birthday.

I had green balloons taped to the ceiling. Other than that, the decorations were pretty minimal. It was actually hard to find stuff for this theme. I went to various stores, but eventually had to purchase stuff on E-bay. Crazy. I found a great YouTube video on how to make Kermit Cupcakes.

They were super easy to make, as far as special cupcakes go. I made a big one for the birthday boy. The video suggested using fruit roll up or fruit by the foot for the frog's mouth. When I went to the store, the fruit roll ups all had writing all over them so I picked out a different "all natural" brand. But when I opened it up, it was more maroon than red and it was grooved, with lines ranging from dark to almost transparent. I went to Michael's and got red fondant instead. It worked perfectly. The eyes are made out of white gumballs. Another important point is to have a cupcake with a nice rounded top. I found a great blog on how to do that. The goodie bags included a Pez dispenser, a CD, and a T-shirt. A week or so before the party I found out all the kids' favorite Muppets. I made their bag and shirt with their favorite character. The shirts are made using a printable iron-on transfer.

Instead of going somewhere for his party, we had a pool party at our house. The kids had a great time swimming and the weather was perfect. My little guy got some new pool toys. They had a blast spraying each other!  Anyone else have a hard time getting your kids out of the pool?!

Some of my son's favorite people came to his party, including his Aunt and Uncle. He had such a great time with them! Side note- Uncle Big Guy is the principal of the school he will be going to in August and it's been a way of reminding him to use the potty, since you have to wear underwear to go to Big Guy's school.

He had fun with his friends as well. One of his presents was fake mustaches and the kids had fun with those. Or maybe the parents just had fun watching the kids wearing them. They looked more Muppety with the mustaches, in my opinion.

My favorite part was when we sang Happy Birthday. He had the biggest smile and I could tell he felt really special. It's tough saying "No" all the time. I love having some special days I can spoil him.

-Me and my Hunny Bunny

Potty Update

My little Hunny Bunny is potty trained! Four days ago he said "I have to go potty" and sat right down and did his business. He's been going ever since. It was liked something just clicked. Most of the time he doesn't even tell us, he just goes over and gets it done. I knew he could do it, just wasn't sure how long it would take. So what was it that worked, you are wondering?

1. Sticker Chart. Grandma bought him a big pack of Cars stickers. We put up a piece of poster board and told him that every time he goes on the potty he can have a sticker.  It has really motivated him. "Can I have a sticker?" he asks, before he can even pull up his underwear. 
   
   
   
2. Public Potties. When I was a kid, my mom called me "The Bathroom Child" because every time we went somewhere I had to check out the bathroom. I don't know why. Maybe I have a fear of needing to go and not having a bathroom to use. I may or may not have nightmares involving that. Anyway, when we went out, I put the kid in a Pull Up, but would still ask if he needed to use the potty. He did a great job trying out toilets at Buffalo Wild Wings, On the Border, and at the baseball game. Maybe it helped him see how important it is to wear underwear and that everybody goes on the potty. Or maybe it helped him feel like a big boy on such a big toilet. 
   
3. Nermina. The evening he started going potty was after he spent the day with Nermina. She is the Pre-K teacher at my school and a great friend. Not sure what she did, but I'm sure she had something to do with it. She is so good with him and I just can't say enough amazing things about her!
   
4. Perseverance. We just kept trying. If I didn't have the time off I don't know what I would do. I suppose the babysitter would potty-train our child. I'm sure that's what a lot of families have to do. Or maybe some kids can accomplish it over a weekend. I feel truly blessed that I get this time with my little guy. He's sitting on the potty right now as I type this. All by himself! 
   

-Me and my Hunny Bunny

Play Ball!

Every Sunday, Matt (my husband), plays in a co-ed softball league with some of our friends. I was invited to play. I actually played one season. But I am not good. Most people can throw a bowling ball better than I can throw a softball. It was an embarrassing season for all involved. I'm much better as a spectator. So Preston and I went to watch on Sunday.

It was very hot and the sun was in our eyes, but we had a good time cheering everyone on. The game was from 5:30-6:30, so I made sure to bring plenty of snacks and water. A man sitting behind us gave Preston a Red Vine, which he loved. Just like his mamma, he got distracted quite a bit, though, and was all over the place. We walked over to the dugout a number of times to say hi to our friends. He needed to use the potty, so we went to the bathroom. He didn't actually go, but it was cool that he wanted to try. We brought some of his cars, so he drove those on the benches.

He raced McQueen and Chick. He even shared his cars with a little girl who was there and showed her how to play with them. It was very sweet. He wasn't really watching the game. Don't tell my husband, but I wasn't really watching either. 

My little scavenger found 2 pine cones and 1 button at the park. We put them in his backpack for future art projects. Or maybe we will make bird feeders. I haven't decided yet. Is it too hot for the birds? The peanut butter will probably drip right off of them it's so hot. Eh, maybe we'll wait for the fall for that project.

Matt had to sit out one inning because they have too many guys on the team and only 5 can play at a time in the field. They take turns (how nice). That was a really tough inning to watch because the other team kept scoring. But it was nice to hang out with him for a bit!

He finished off his water bottle while we were there and he got really sweaty. Such a boy! I don't think we will go any more this summer though. 5:30 is a very hot time and it's only going to get hotter this summer. I honestly don't know how they play softball and run around in this heat. We will go to more games in the fall. 

-Me and my Hunny Bunny

Potty Training

I am no expert. I hope you didn't find this blog thinking "She has some good ideas on how to train MY toddler", because I don't. I am certified to teach children birth-3rd grade, yet this potty training business is giving me a run for my money. OK, maybe I'm being dramatic. We have made many improvements, and we are both learning quite a bit and I'm sure in a few years I'll think it went by fairly quickly. But for now, it's like time is standing still and I'm in the Potty Zone (cue eerie music).
I've read and heard many people say "Wait til he's ready". Here are the signs that tell me he is in fact ready

• He is usually dry after nap time
• His diapers bother him. He says they are itching him and he pulls at them
• He asks me to change him right away (which is super cute- "Mommy, can you change me pwease?"

Here are the challenges that told me he isn't ready, however

• He screams and cries when I ask him to sit on the potty
• He can't pull up or down his pants
• Sometimes he yells that he's a baby and not a big boy

Over winter break we bought him some underwear and had him try it out. A few weekends we even put him in underwear for a few hours, which led to many accidents so we just put him back in a diaper. Months have passed and we have been working on it for almost a solid week now. Every day, all day, underwear party. 

At least while he's awake. He has gotten SO much better at all the "challenges" we were facing a few weeks ago. He can pull his underwear up and down. He kicks them off to sit on the potty, but he can even put them back on! He doesn't cry anymore, or rarely. Once in awhile he asks for a diaper and I just tell him that 3 year-olds can't wear diapers and he's usually more cooperative. He isn't afraid of pooping on the potty like some kids, so that's awesome. He's actually pooped 3 times on his little potty so far! But only if we tell him to sit on the potty first. I've been letting him play my "game" (tablet) while he's sitting there, which motivates him enough to stay sitting and do his business. 

New challenges we are facing

• How to keep him off the carpet without making him feel like we don't believe he can hold it and without continually telling him to play on the tile like a dog.
• Getting him to tell us when he needs to go. He does fine when we tell him it's time to use the potty, but when we wait for him to "listen to his body", he has an accident.
• Going places- we've been putting him in a diaper when we go out because he technically is not potty trained yet. Is that sending the wrong message? I don't want to be trapped at home all summer either.
• He doesn't like underwear. He often yells that he doesn't want underwear. We did find out he prefers shorts, PJ shorts especially. I guess he likes the free feeling. Too bad we only have a few pairs of those. Here he is in a pair of green PJ shorts (no underwear). Not sure what's up with the Miley Cyrus tongue action going on...that's his new thing. 

I downloaded 2 potty training apps that have been a huge help! Potty Time has a feature that lets your child call up this lady, Rachel, and tell her you went in the potty or had an accident and it's like she's Skyping with you. She tells Preston how proud she is when he went or to "really listen to your body and when you feel the need to use the potty, stop what you are doing and go to the potty" in a really sweet way so he doesn't feel bad, when he has an accident. Potty Show is an app that has a book and song about the steps to using the bathroom. Preston thinks it's hilarious and loves "Mustache Preston", the character we customized for him. 

Hopefully I'll be able to report that he's fully potty trained in a week or two. I am all ears to any advice or suggestions. 

"That's My Name" Finger Painting

One way to keep a 3 year-old from getting into trouble is to constantly keep him busy. I got this finger painting idea from Pinterest, however when I went back to look for it there were so many pins about it from different people that I do not know who to credit. I started with a canvas and used blue painters tape to spell out my son's name. I only had the thick tape so I had to cut it. I also am not a fan of writing names in all capital letters. I have taught way too many kindergartners who started school so proud that they can write their name and I have to reteach them to only make the first letter a capital. It takes all year. Anyway, here's the canvas with tape on it.

 I squirted red, yellow, green, and blue Crayola finger paint onto the canvas and let him smear it all around. Yesterday I let him finger paint on paper so he could see what it was all about. I didn't want this to be his first experience with it. I had to encourage him to cover all the space. He would be happy just painting the same spot over and over.

 This is what it looked like after he was done. I let it dry for quite a few hours. I love how the colors blended together. He did have a hard time crossing the midline as you can see from the way the colors are blended. We will continue to work on activities that force him to do that.

Then I peeled the tape off. The paint bled a little bit under the tape, but I think it still looks really nice. He can spell his name when he sees the letters, so this was good practice for him. He also knows the sounds, so if I say "The P says", he will say the sound. He can do it without looking at the letters, but it's nice to have the visual. 

My husband and I are currently working on plans to turn our art room into his new bedroom. We are going to put in new floors and paint the walls and set up his big boy bed. This is going to look great in his new room!

Summer Break!

It's summer break! What a wonderful time! I've been thinking, though, how my summers have changed from year to year. It's obviously different than when I was a kid, but from year to year as a teacher, and now a wife and mother, it's continued to change and evolve.
I moved out to Arizona in 2004, but didn't get my first summer break until 2007. That was a glorious vacation and very well deserved in my opinion. I spent a good portion of my break in Ohio.

In 2008, Matt and I were dating and went to the Outer Banks with my family.  We stayed in a house right across the street from the beach. I hope we can do that again one day, because to this day it's one of my favorite vacations.

The following year I spent a month in Ohio getting ready for the wedding- finding the perfect photographer, florist, cake decorator, center pieces, and everything else. I went to a baseball game with my brother, Michael, among other things.

After being married almost a year, Matt and I took our honeymoon the summer of 2010 and went to Santa Barbara, Disneyland, and some other awesome places in California. I also flew to Michigan to drive Allison, Matt's sister, to Arizona that summer. That was a fun road trip!

Things drastically changed the following summer, when we had a baby. I spent the summer of 2011 starring at and cuddling the cutest baby in all existence. I'm sure every mother feels that way. But come on-- look at that face!!

 In 2012, Preston had his first adventure on a airplane and got to visit the Midwest for the first time. He had a great time with his grandparents and aunts and uncles.

 I remember thinking how fun he was at that age. But he was even more fun the next year when we went to the beach and Lego Land.

And this year, 15 days into break, and I'm having the time of my life with such a fun little 3 year-old. I feel so lucky to get to spend extra time with him. We had a ton of fun at the Sea Life Aquarium (until he got tired and threw a huge fit). I will be writing more about our adventures this summer, so come back and see us again!

-Me and my Hunny Bunny