Crafting, Building And Playing With Food

CRAFTING

We've had a lot of rainy days here, which often leads to lots of crafting

Lots of pretty scrapbook paper was strewn all over the dining room table so I couldn't resist and made this candle holder, cutting out parts of the design and then wrapping the paper around a glass jar.

 Aravis made this using fabric.

And letters from a Dasani water bottle :)

Aravis, who was thoroughly enjoying using the glue gun, also made this bedazzled chariot for Xury

BUILDING

 Aravis desperately wanted to, in her words, "accomplish" something herself, so she set to work making this cage for a chick she hopes to have someday.

Dominick helped with the cutting but she did all the planning, measuring, and nailing herself.

Nothing is more fun than a cup full of hardware.

PLAYING WITH FOOD

 We made peanut butter playdough for Xury

but everyone else ended up playing too.

 

She mostly just ate it.

There were so many different recipes on the internet that we just ended up adding dry milk and oatmeal to the peanut butter until it was the right consistency.

 Pretzel messaging.

My favorite.

One Whole Day

So, I decide I wanted to document one whole day with my camera. It turned out to be a pretty full day.

Aravis woke up hungry but nothing sounded good. After several minutes of frustration for all involved, Dominick suggested making cinnamon rolls which sounded good to her. So, the two of them set to work in the kitchen.....

....while I got the baby ready for the day. 

 There was a bit of a dispute over who should wear the diaper. Xury thought  headphones and nothing else was the best choice.

While Dominick finished up the cinnamon rolls, the younger girls and I headed outside for some cleaning (me) and water play (them)

 Water,

 flowers,

 beans and beads,

cups, bowls and spoons kept them busy for at least an hour while I cleaned our very neglected patio area. I also managed to squeeze in a little laundry.

We came in and had some cinnamon rolls that unfortunately hadn't turned out very well. He used the wrong flour. He doesn't have a mother who is gifted in the kitchen to help with that sort of thing. The kids like to bake from scratch and my idea of baking is, well...... do you know you can just buy most baked goods? 

Xury had a nap and I had lunch while Aravis had some down time in front of the TV.

For lunch, Tanner made these cute sushi sandwiches for the kids

She used a rolling pin to flatten the bread, then added meat and cheese, rolled it up and cut it in slices.

 She made some with cream cheese and jelly too.

Taking some time to clean up the house led to a dance party in the living room.

In the afternoon, Xury, Aravis and I headed back outside. They played on the slip and slide while I cleaned up the rest of the yard and did some more laundry.

She's still the only one of my babies to willing dunk her head in the water.

And while Dominick spent some time on his drums....

Tanner worked on dinner.

 

 Tanner has chosen to take charge of meals which she loves and I loathe. She plans meals, buys what she needs when we shop and then makes dinner almost every night. Tonight she made homemade gnocchi. We were planning to go to the Children's Museum so she made it ahead of time so it would be quick and easy when we got home.

Then Dominick and Greg went to the mall to shop for soccer cleats while the girls and I and Aravis's friend headed to the Children's museum.

It wasn't until we got there that I realized I had the wrong date and it wasn't the family night so we played in the playground for a little bit and left. 

We stopped at Target on the way home to look at the Halloween stuff and buy some craft supplies.

 The girls took a quick ride on this horse.

When we got home, Tanner got dinner ready while I took the girls outside to enjoy our backyard, finally clean and safe enough for Xury!

and I folded another load of laundry.

(photo by Aravis)

After Tanner's awesome dinner we did this craft.

We cut out designs in craft foam to make bath toys.

Which turned out pretty cool.

And of course, no day is complete without a black-light, karaoke dance party.

Gotta love the glowing diaper!

So that was pretty much our whole day. Dominick didn't make it in many of the pictures due to lack of proper attire (or clothes in general). I know there was more cleaning, computer and tv time that my camera didn't capture and probably some fighting, nagging and whining, but for the most part that was everything. Fun and full.

Fort Stanwix

I've been meaning to post pictures of our trip to Fort Stanwix but the pictures have been held hostage on my husband's computer and I just finally got around to transferring them. I've been to this fort more times than I could possibly count but each time I learn something new. I know, I may be the biggest dork around, but even after years and years of coming here, I look forward to it every year. This year, my older two were over it but my younger girls and I spent several hours learning and exploring late 18th century military life.

 First stop was the museum where we learned the history of the fort and its significance and sat to build some forts of our own.

 

 Then we went inside......

 Again, I'm a total dork, but what was particularly thrilling for me, this year, was that I was reading The Whites And The Blues by Alexandre Dumas. It takes place at the end of the 18th century, during the French Revolution, and is largely about several historical military campaigns. So, it was a different continent and a few decades earlier but the military culture was still so similar that it felt like I had stepped inside my book. Yes, this is the kind of thing that excites me.  Really.  A lot.

practicing 18th century texting

snoozing on a bed of straw

Checking out the furs at the trading post.  We learned that beaver fur was the most valuable at the time because they used them to make fur hats that were very popular in Europe.

Musket training

Then up on the roof to fire on the enemy
(or the poor, unsuspecting Little Caesar's customers)

colonial girl

Continental soldier (with her breeches falling down)

We finished up just as a thunderstorm was rolling in and made it back to the car just as the first giant drops were falling. It was a fun, relaxing, informative day.

Back to Normal

Things are slowly getting back to normal around here. The kids made a mud bath in the backyard, the house is mostly back in order, the kids are adjusting to all being back together and I think I've almost recovered from my summer.  My new baby K'tan came in the mail today to replace the one I lost and I could not be happier! I don't know how I managed to raise my other three babies without one. I barely survived the past two weeks. While I don't need it nearly as much as I used to, it is still so worth it for the times I do!

Our not-so-much-a-baby-anymore needed a new car seat and Aravis used the box to make a play house for Xury.

She loved it!

as did some others.......

And I found a cool way to display some of the random things we have laying around.

We're always collecting cool stuff from nature but I've never had a good place to keep the things we find.
They're usually stashed randomly around the house on various corners and shelves or stuffed in drawers.

This way, they're neat, they're organized, they're easy to find and they're easy to see. And since we go through at least one jar of sauce a week, making more space is as easy as washing out the jar.