Surprise Clothes

If you ever need something to help your kids get dressed in the morning, I have a game for you.

We play it several times every week. And not only does it help the kids to like getting dressed (there is always something so much more appealing to them about pjs), but it also insures that they are wearing clothes that match and are right for the season (provided you can pick out matching clothes yourself . . . sometimes I wonder that about myself . . .) ANYWAY,

We call it “Surprise Clothes”. I sneak into their rooms, pick out their clothes, and hide them under a pillow. Then they have to close their eyes and keep them closed (this is the HARD part) while I dress them. The whole time I’m dressing them, they get to guess what I’m putting on them judging by the feel of the fabric. My kids love it! And Ethan guesses right about half the time, though it may be because he’s peeking! But they always giggle when they finally open their eyes to see what they are wearing.

It’s a simple game, but “Surprise Clothes” is a favorite at our house.

Of course, if you play it TOO much, you miss out on the fun time when they do in fact pick out their own outfits!

June Recipe

Angel-Hair Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce

This recipe is a quick one. Only 15 minutes or so. A sort of sad picture though, as I didn't have fresh basil or Parmesan.

12 oz. angel-hair pasta
1 jar (14.5 oz) marinara sauce
¾ cup frozen petite peas, not thawed
1/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream
Garnish: chopped fresh basil and Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions.

Meanwhile, bring marinara sauce to a boil in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir in peas, cover and simmer 2 minutes or until peas are tender. Reduce heat to low, add sour cream and stir until blended.
Toss pasta with sauce and top with basil and cheese.

May's Ten Things

Once again, I'm linking up with Emmy Mom to share with you . . .

Ten Things to Smile About This Month!

1. Though 8 weeks early, and therefore a BIG surprise, my nephew Ryder was born. He's doing so great and is most perfect. He should be out of the NICU soon! Also, this is the second month in a row that I've had a new nephew born!

2. All my family came to town. We partied, ate treats, talked, laughed, and welcomed the little guy previously mentioned!

3. Mother's Day! It was a great day and my kids we darling toward me the whole day.

4. I got to go shopping and buy new clothes with a gift card I received on Mother's Day!

5. Giant Bubbles! Enough said!

6. I had fun coloring and coloring and coloring with my kids

7. I had fun doing quite a few sewing projects, baby shoes, dresses, and hair accessories!

8. I fell in love with my yard, even though the number a weeds can sometimes be overwhelming

9. I got to watch Ethan in his Preschool Program

10. Eating homemade ice cream. Oh man, it was good!

Bird Watching

Bird watching is very enjoyable when you bring your camera along with you. I could have stayed out for hours, but with a bunch a little kids with me waiting to ride a train, I was lucky to get these.

Last Day of Preschool

Today was Ethan's last day of Preschool. All the families were invited to watch their end of the year program. Ethan was so darling during the whole thing (not that I'm biased or anything!).

The program started with Ethan leading everyone in his class in the Pledge of Allegiance:

Here's his cute class:

Two pictures of Ethan doing the actions to the songs they sang for us. He did the actions perfectly, and I could see him mouthing the words, but I don't think he was singing very loud:

He enjoyed his cookie at the end too, but only after serving cookies to Todd, Madeline, and me:

His teachers were great! They really supported his reading and sent books home with him everyday. He will miss them a lot!

And here are a few samples of his progress reports. It's fun to see improvement, especially when it occurs over such a short period of time:

Preschool was such a blessing for Ethan. I'm so grateful he had a chance to go this year. And I'm excited for his new preschool in the fall. I can't believe how fast he's growing up!

Visiting the Temple

My mom and I took the kids to visit the Draper Temple grounds today. We sat across the way to eat our lunches and then went on the grounds to take pictures and walk around. The kids were very cute as we walked. They all kept their arms folded and talked in mostly quiet voices. That's pretty good considering they are ages 2, 3, 4, and 5!

Miss Madeline

Ethan and his cousin Lucas

Darling Alex

Cute!

Look closely, and you'll see Lucas in the background

Pancake Celebration

Tonight we celebrated Ethan reading 100 books by going to IHOP for pancakes. Ethan couldn’t imagine a better reward! Not when you consider the gigantic stack of chocolate pancakes he got:
Madeline helped herself to a pretty huge chocolate pancake too

And to wash it down, nothing less than chocolate milk . . . feel that tummy ache coming on?

Mimi also gave him some balloons

Good Job Ethan! You're one smart kiddo. And I love you!