A is for...

So this past week I started "school" with Connor. I'm an educator at heart and I just couldn't wait until the day my kids were big enough so that I could be the one to teach them to read. And although Connor is still only 2 he'll be 3 in November and I thought this year would be a good year to get started. We are doing a letter a week and he LOVES it! He can't wait to sit at the dining table and color, read and "snap, snap" (cut with scissors). So here's what we did this week (followed by all the resources we used):

Monday: A is for Ape

• We went to the grocery store and picked out foods that started with the letter A, like apples, avocados, apricots, animal crackers and Alphabet Soup.
• We traced the letter A and practiced writing them. Connor did a big A the first time. 
• We drew Apes (and bears).
• We learned all about the different types of Apes from National Geographic for Kids watched videos and heard how they sound.
• We made Apricot baby food for Logan.
• Learned all about the Letter A from a fun Computer game!

 Connor's first A.

Muncher's want's to write some A's!!

 Apricots for Logan!

We also started a chore chart for Connor in hopes that maybe he'll be excited to use the potty...

Tuesday: A is for Alligators!

• We walked to the library and checked out books all about Alligators, Apples, Astronauts, Angels, Ants, and Johnny Appleseed.
• Sang the Mr. Alligator Song
• Drew a picture of an Alligator
• Read Alligator books
• Made an Alligator paper bag puppet

Wednesday: A is for Apples!

• Made Applesauce
• Read about Johnny Appleseed and watched a movie about him.
• Made Apple Prints using paint and apples sliced in half.
• Made an apple paper bag puppet.

 First you got to wash the apples

 Then you got to peel and core them.

 Stick them in the crock pot with a little water, sugar and cinnamon on low for 6-8 hours.

 Apple Prints

Thursday: A is for Astronaut!

• Read about an Astronaut named Dmitri
• Colored a picture of an Astronaut
• Watched the movie "Astro Boy" during lunch time.

Friday: A is for Ants!

• Read a book about Ants.
• Ate ants on a log (celery with peanut butter and raisins).
• Watched the movie "Ant Bully" for our Friday night Pizza and a movie night.

Great Snacks/Lunches for The Letter A week:

• Apricots
• Avocados and Crackers
• Animal Crackers
• Alphabet Soup
• Alphabet Cereal
• Ants on a log
• Applesauce
• Apples
• Apple juice

Great Books for The Letter A week:

• Very Boring Alligator by Jean Gralley
• There's An Alligator Under My Bed by Mercer Mayer
• Johnny Appleseed My Story by David L. Harrison
• Dmitri the Astronaut by Jon Agee
• An Ant's Day Off by Bonny Becker

Resources:

The big book we use:

The Normal size book we use:

The Computer Game we use:

Logan's Eating!

So around 4 months we started feeding Logan rice cereal. Since then, and he is only 5 months, he has tried (and LOVED) oatmeal, peaches, plums, sweet potatoes, bananas, and avocados (which have all been prepared by hand not from a jar. It's super easy and a bit cheaper, just fyi for anyone interested! :) He loves to eat and gets a little angry when we don't shovel it in fast enough. It's hard to believe he is old enough to be eating now! Soon he'll be crawling. Yikes! Here are some videos and pics to enjoy of Logan's eating experience:

Eating rice cereal for the first time.

Eating sweet potatoes for the first time.

We (and when i say "we" i mean daddy) tend to make a bit of a mess when "we" feed Logan. :o)

A Quick Trip to Phoenix

So this past weekend we took a quick trip down to Phoenix. And this is why:

Dan Got a truck! It's a bit bigger than the old truck and will be useful in hauling lumber and wood back down from the cabin and will assist in the building of the next cabin in Ramah.

But it wasn't all business:

While we were there we checked out SeaLife. Which was pretty cool even though Connor ran through it  in less than 30 minutes!

It was a long drive! :o)