Snapshots

Bug finishes up her project from Sunday school, while Monkey explains the Bible story: "Jesus and Nicodemus met at the night time to talk about God."

We love Clubhouse Jr. magazine! Even Goose is flipping through an old issue.

The youth center where we go to playgroup added a sign illustrating what kinds of fish are in their tank. They were so excited when they managed to spot each fish on the sign.

Window paints (paint inside a quart bag taped to the window): Lots of fun and no mess!

Independence
All three girls went outside (in our completely enclosed yard) all by themselves! Goose loves going outside in any circumstances, and I think Monkey and Bug enjoy not having a tagalong Mommy on their adventures. Bug in particular also likes being the responsible big sister and looking after Goose.

Monkey and Bug taught Goose how to "slither and slide" down the stairs by herself (going feet first on her belly). She's been capable of crawling up the stairs by herself for awhile now, and I feel a bit better about it now that she can go down safely too.

Proud Daddy Moments
Monkey and Bug were using straws at lunch, and Monkey examines her straw for a moment, carefully bends the top to a 90 degree angle, and grins "Look, Mommy, it's like an allen wrench!"

While discussing Star Wars (sorting out who's a good guy and who's a bad guy), Monkey and Bug had a very exciting realization: "Daddy fights bad guys like Yoda does!"

I never thought I'd say . . .
"Excuse me, I think I lost my toddler under your table." Fortunately, this happened at a church dinner, not a restaurant, and the senior citizens I was interrupting thought this was hilarious. They were highly impressed with Goose's speed and stealth.

They're getting so big. . . sniff . . . tear
I've been on kind of a cleaning out/organizing/decluttering binge lately (if only this would strike me more frequently, I might actually keep a clean house!), which led to some fun discussions with the girls. Inspired by upcoming church yard sale and big consignment sale, I finally went through the girls dressers and hand-me-downs. All this led to Monkey and Bug discussing how they were too big for some of their clothes, but someday Goose would be big enough to wear their things, and how they used to be Goose-sized, and she could wear some of their old things now, and how we have a few things that they will wear when they get big enough. It was a fuller realization they haven't always been their current size, and this whole idea of growing up. They've been really interested in this idea of being a grown up too, and telling me what they're going to do when they grow up--drive, have kids, go to pilates class, etc. (According to Monkey and Bug this magical moment of being "grown up" happens at the age of 4. They're in for a let down this summer when their birthday rolls around!) In the midst of this cleaning out, we ran across Daddy and my wedding album, which they have spent quite a bit of time pouring over, and straightening out who's who and how they're related (this is frequently determined by asking whose "tummy they came out of"). They got the biggest kick, though, out of seeing "little bitty Uncle N!" and "Phuncle P with short hair and no beard!" Those last two also contributed to the whole used to be younger, getting older discussions. We also went through the baby stuff in the garage and took pictures so I could sell things online that we don't use anymore: baby carrier carseat, high chair, double stroller, etc. It's the end of an era in our household, folks!

Library Day
We actually had some excitement at the library this week. The children's section acquired a new bean bag chair, which the girls were thrilled about--just the right size for two little girl bums to fit in. I don't think Monkey and Bug even looked at puzzles this week, they had me pull over a couple of bins of books and settled in for a good long read.

We also got to see some friends (a mom and daughter from the neighborhood and a fellow military, homeschooling family) and make some new friends (a mom with two preschoolers and an infant). We came home with these books:
George and Martha: Round and Round
Are You Ready to Play Outside?
Hansel and Gretel
Tiny Life in a Puddle
Fish Is Fish
Trucks! (we found the trucks in the book that are like the ones in Bob the Builder)
Dora's Day at the Fair
Babar and His Family

Dentist
Monkey and Bug had their first ever dentist visit this week (no cavities--whew!). I'm so glad I found a pediatric dentist! Their very kid-friendly office even had windows between the exam rooms. This struck as a bit weird at first until the 8ish year old in the next room started making silly faces at the girls and let them watch while the dentist checked his teeth. He also played peekaboo with Goose while Monkey and Bug were getting their own teeth looked at. We had a bit of rough start in convincing one of them to actually get in the chair and open her mouth, but the dental hygienist was amazing. She explained every tool, she demonstrated on their baby dolls (lack of teeth notwithstanding), and narrated every step of what she was doing. Monkey, Bug, and even Goose were soaking it up like sponges. Although Goose didn't get her teeth checked, she insisted on having a turn in the big chair too. Goose definitely seems to be our little extrovert: while her big sisters in typical fashion didn't want to move more than a foot from my side, Goose walked up to a dental hygienist and held up her arms to be carried, then moved happily from one hygienist to another while we waited for the dentist.

Cleaning
Bug's favorite job to do is cleaning the toilet--and this week she was able to tell me and perform every step of that task (with close supervisin, of course). That's the great thing about using homemade cleaners (mostly castille soap, baking soda and vinegar), not only is it eco- and wallet-friendly, but the entourage can get in on the "fun"! Since scrubbing the toilet involves a baking soda and vinegar chemical reaction, it's actually a pretty fascinating task for a couple of 3 year olds. Monkey prefers scrubbing the bathtub and shower. This task involves her stripping down, being handed a rag and a bowl of soft scrub, and just going at it. She's one happy--and very clean--girl. We haven't actually brought Goose in on this yet; I think her sisters were about 18 months old and mostly over the chew-on-everything stage when I started getting them to do a first round of scrubbing the tub. This week Bug also discovered a new favorite job: vacuuming the stairs. I suspect this is mostly due to the novelty of our new vacuum, but it does have an extension that's basically a small vacuum head the right size for her to push around. Of course, I have to get the vacuum cleaner up and down the stairs for her, and at this point vacuum all the missed spots (with Monkey and Goose close at hand investigating/getting in the way of the whole process).

Homeschool Playgroup
Last week was the first week that Goose has been able to walk by herself at the gym. She is one happy (and completely fearless!) kid. Her usual activities are picking up a basketball, throwing it, chasing it, repeat or finding a soccer ball, kicking it, chasing it, repeat. She's obviously been watching the big kids closely all these months, because this week she insisted on having a soccer ball to kick (the volleyball I tried to hand just wouldn't do). Goose is definitely going to require more close supervision than Monkey and Bug, who stick to sidelines or at least far from the big kids. Goose, on the other hand, wandered straight into the middle of an actual basketball game involving 4 or 5 preteens! She was utterly fascinating and whisked her away just before she got her head bonked by a ball coming through the basket! Monkey and Bug usually play with balls and hula hoops, but this week somebody pulled out a bag of jump ropes. They were too big for the girls to actually jump rope, but the were perfect for making shapes, numbers, and letters on the gym floor.
Library Day
The entourage has usually been interested in doing puzzles and getting me to read books at the library, but this week Monkey perused the shelves and picked out most of the books. She got some good ones!
The Star of the Circus
Andrew's Loose Tooth
Mother Goose
Sheep Blast Off
If You Give a Moose a Muffin
Shout!
Over in the Castle (a counting book; like Over in the Meadow only with knights and dragons, lords and ladies)
Should I Share My Ice Cream (an Elephant and Piggie book)
Read Me a Fairy Tale (renewed; it has 14 stories!)

Trucks and Star Wars
You'd think I had three little boys! The entourage have watched Bob the Builder for all their morning snuggle times this week, including one special that involved footage of real trucks and workers building a real house. We reminisced about watching the workers build the houses down the street. Recently they've also spent a good bit of time playing with their own trucks, building roads (lines of masking tape throughout the playroom) and sorting out what kind of trucks they have (trash truck, cement mixer, tow truck, etc.). Star Wars has also been popular lately. The Yoda and Darth Vader bobble heads got lots of playtime as did the light sabers. Bug even figured out how to get into her Yoda costume by herself (followed by the introduction: "Yoda I am.") Then at the grocery store, they were picking out fruit snacks for their treat: originally they picked up a box with Dora--until they spotted Star Wars! Dora got dropped like a hot potato.

Projects

Monkey and Bug invented their own projects this week. One day they decided they needed big paper and "spot paints" (paint markers). Later in the week, we went for a walk (the first walk in which Goose actually walked; Monkey and Bug rode their trikes) and found several really nice pinecones. We talked about pinecones falling off the trees, and I suggested turning them into bird feeders. They had other plans: They explained that we already had a bird feeder and that these were going to be for decoration. They painted them and hung them on the bird feeder in the backyard.

Circuits

Daddy decided to break out one of his Christmas presents this week and introduce the entourage to the inner workings of electronics with Snap Circuits Jr. They made a light bulb turn on and off and made a song play, and they seem to understand the basics of creating a closed circuit for it to work. [This section subject to rewrite once Daddy gets a chance to read it  :-) ]

Library Day
The entourage spent most of their time at the library this week working on puzzles. Goose's triumph was figuring out how to climb up on the stools to reach the puzzles. We came home with these books:
Zoo in the Sky (constellations)
The Three Blind Mice
Peter's Chair
Read Me a Fairy Tale
There's a Bird on My Head
A Color of His Own and George and Martha (renewed from last week, because we couldn't find them before we walked out the door)

Rocking Horses
The entourage ended up getting two rocking horses for Christmas. Monkey and Bug love the big one and frequently use him as "transportation" to where ever their pretend play destination is. They've also used the sewing cards as either tags ("So if he gets lost, the people will know to bring him back to our house") or as a GPS ("So I won't get lost while I'm riding"). Goose took a little warming up. In fact, for the first week or so she was terrified. We finally pieced it together: This thing has 4 legs, fur, and is about the size of Grandma and Granddad's dog. So, once a day I'd sit down with her to pet her horse, and occasionally Monkey and Bug would hop on for a few seconds to show her it was safe. Monkey even explained and demonstrated that the rocking horse didn't have a tongue, so it couldn't possibly lick her. Finally, she was convinced--and she loves it!

Oh, the Questions!
How do frogs sneeze?
How long was I in your tummy?
Does [fill in name of extended family member] have any sisters? If the answer is no, then: Why not?
How old is God? (Anybody have tips on explaining eternity to 3 year olds? They were not convinced.)
I also spent some time explaining the importance of the contents of my wallet and why I don't want to answer an endless stream of questions while trying to find it (it was--thank goodness!--eventually found.)w

As much fun as the holidays were, we spent this week recovering from them and getting back to the normal routine. We didn't do any projects and not all the usual social events were happening this week, but the girls had lots of free time to explore their new toys.

Library Day

I think it's been almost a month since we went to the library! This week there were a couple of other homeschool families. Most of them were older elementary aged kids, but one family had a 1 year old whom Goose made friends with. They spent a long time passing one of her shoes back and forth. The fun ended when the little boy decided he wanted to try passing Goose's chewy back and forth. That did NOT go over well. This was also the first week that Goose actually picked books out the toddler bins, sat down on a bean bag chair, and "read" them. Monkey and Bug also had a first this week: checking out books by themselves. They were very proud of themselves; looks like I'll have to find out when they can get their own cards.

This week we came home with:
Stargazers (we're looking forwarding to trying Daddy's new telescope)
Cinderella (I'm not sure were she heard about Cinderella, but Bug has been asking me to tell her "all about Cinderella" all week. We found a beautifully illustrated version to bring home.)
Jack and the Bean Stalk
Look Again (involves magnified pictures of objects, so we'll be pulling out our new handheld microscope to look at other things close up)
A Color of His Own
Back and Forth
George and Martha
First Steps Bible

Steps to Reading

Monkey and Bug have gotten really good at letter recognition; now they've started working on letter sounds. This involves my answering the following questions: What starts with the letter . . . ? (I reply by rattling off as many words as I can think of.) What does . . . start with? (I have them help me figure it out by emphasizing the initial sound; sometimes they know it, but mostly I have to tell them at this point.) Do . . . and . . . start with the same letter? (Most of the time they have this one right.) They've also been requesting Super Why (a PBS Kids show that introduces classic storybook characters and teaches letters and phonics) for their morning snuggle time in front of the TV and exploring Starfall.com (phonics-based games) on the netbook.

They've also been doing a lot of storytelling lately. Together they reenact/recite some of their favorite stories. Billy Goats Gruff and the Three Bears have been popular. For the former, one of them will pretend to be the troll and curl up under the "bridge" (the platform on their climb-and-slide), and the other will pretend to the be goats taking turns walking across. Monkey added her own creative twist to one retelling when she informed Bug that she was not a goat--she was the mommy troll and therefore could not be eaten. Bug found this hilarious, and I was glad to hear to that mommies are the ultimate authority and also not edible. :-) They get creative with the Three Bears too, and like to come up with new adjectives for the porridge ("too smooshy" is apparently a really good one). Monkey likes to gather an audience of Bug, Goose if she can be corralled, and whatever stuffed buddies are readily available and stand in front of them to lively tell a mostly original "special story." Bug, on the other hand, likes to play librarian: She'll find a chair to sit in and a book she has mostly memorized, then she'll read to Monkey, Goose, and I, while running her finger over the words at the bottom of the page. Bug's reading reminds me of a quote from The Importance of Being Earnest when Algernon is discussing his piano playing: "I don't play with accuracy, but I play with great feeling!"

Yum!

This is not cooking. At some point this week
we pulled out the cloud dough, so
the girls could measure and pour at will.

Monkey and Bug helped me do a lot of cooking on Saturday. Bug started by helping make the salad at lunch. She's been practicing her cutting skills with a kiddie knife and play dough; she wanted to try them out with a real knife and carrot, so I held her hands for added steadiness and strength. Then after naptime, they helped make mole verde, hummus, and no-bake honey nut balls (a recipe from my new cookbook). This involved lots of measuring, counting, pouring, and sampling. The girls were feeling adventurous (and hungry) so they wanted to try tomatillos, chick peas, and oatmeal before they went into their respective dishes as well as licking whatever bowls and utensils I would let them have.

Discussions

We've had a lot serious discussions lately--mostly in the car. Apparently staring out the window leads to deep thoughts. Now that the girls are past the endless repititions of "Why?" here's a sampling of the questions posed to me recently:
-Where does God live?
-Whose tummy did Grandma come out of? (Related, we also sorted out that Aunts E and A are not, in fact, twins. It's an understandable assumption--they look as much alike as Monkey and Bug do.)
-Why do you have to look where you're going when you drive? (Midway through my explanation, Bug explained it herself by recalling how looking sideways led to a recent crash on her scooter.)
-What is "dead"?
-Where do you go when you're dead? (Bug concluded that when dead people show up in heaven, God should just fix them and send them back.)

Where the Fun Happens

Learning happens anywhere and everywhere, both in and out of the house (and a lot happens in the car from one place to the other, for that matter). However, several places in our house are particularly kid-centric, and since we'll be relocating pretty frequently with the military, I though it'd be fun to have a record of what the entourage's life looked like at every stage. Please note that I've tried to catch our house at its cleanest. Usually it's full of all the signs of great young minds at work, that is, utter chaos.

The Reading Nook

This space is actually their closet, and it also has a dresser and hanging clothes. I just hope they have this much room when they're teenagers! (Their bedroom, while kid-centric, really is just beds and stuffed animals--nothing too interesting.) The bookshelf also holds their "push lights," LED lights that you just push to turn on and they have a 5-min. automatic turn off. This lets the big girls--ok, mostly just Bug--read books if they wake up too early or just aren't tired yet at bedtime.

The Study

Our routine is to hang out in here between lunch and naptime in addition to whenever they just wander in. I read books, and Monkey and Bug either cuddle up to listen or, more frequently, listen while they color or practice cutting. This is also where they do other quiet play activities like worksheets, flashcards, and puzzles. Goose has her own basket of toys, and she received a set of non-choking-hazard crayons for Christmas. This room is also full of shelves full of books, and Daddy and I have a small desk for us to work at too.

The Playroom

This playroom is thanks to generous relatives and good consignment sales, and we love it! It's also gotten rave reviews from kids much older than the entourage, which just confirms its awesomeness. Obviously this is where most of the playtime is spent, although the contents of the playroom tend to ooze across the house over the course of the day.

The Backyard

This space just became kid-centric over Christmas, and we are looking forward to spending many hours out here! During the summer we'll spend a lot of time out front too with trikes and scooters when all the neighbors come outside to enjoy the long days and cooler evenings.