Easter Lunch and Family Visit

My Mom, Dad, Brother and niece came over for Easter lunch. We had a Ham, scalloped potatoes and pea salad. My mom brought some yummy orange sweet potatoes to complete the meal. It was a real nice visit.
My parents brought a gift for each of the boys. Carson's was a real rocket that you can launch along with 3 engines. He was so excited that he didn't really want to do anything else all day other than play with that rocket. He has been wanting one for a while and likes rockets so much that we have had plans to go see the launches with DARS soon.
Cameron sat with everyone during the meal while my Mom fed him peas and potatoes. I think she really enjoyed it as Carson didn't really eat much food until he was much older.
After the meal, we had some chocolate-zuccini cupcakes that I made. I frosted them with a cream cheese frosting that I had colored with natural vegetable dye and topped with 3 natural jelly beans each. My niece, Baleigh and Carson helped me decorate them. Carson hasn't ever had a frosted cupcake. He wants to do Easter again tomorrow :)

Easter Morning

The boys left their empty easter baskets on the table before going to bed for the easter bunny to fill. They know that the easter bunny is fiction, but it is fun anyway. In the morning along with the filled baskets, there was a half-eaten carrot because the bunny needed a snack. Carson was so excited to get the little toys in his basket. He kept saying, "I REALLY like what I got in my easter basket!!". I also made some pretty cookies for Carson's basket. He was so happy to get them and didn't want to eat because they were so pretty. He got over that fast!

Homemade Easter Egg Dyes

I decided to make homemade dye to color our easter eggs this year. Carson helped me prepare them. Green=spinach, Tumeric=yellow, Paprika=orange, Red Cabbage=lavendar, Beets=pink

First, I boiled the foods in water. The next day, we colored the eggs with the help of my brother, Charlie and niece, Baleigh. It was fun, but the green and purple didn't color well, so I had to add some of my store bought natural vegetable dyes. Carson really enjoyed it, but was wanting to finish. I think he just wanted to play with Charlie and Baleigh more than color eggs. He always prefers to play when friends or family visit rather than do a project. He is so social.

Releasing Ladybugs

We bought a bad of ladybugs from the organic garden store. There are 1750 ladybugs in that little bag and Carson and I had a blast putting them in the garden and throughout the yard. Cameron even helped although there is a slight chance he accidentally ate one. I also took a cute pic of Cam trying to grab the stream of water.

Blueberry Snow Cream

We had a great day at the park with Daddy last Friday. When we came home, Carson decided to create his blueberry snow cream from the snow he collected on our Snow Day. He told me on the drive home that he will need: snow, blueberries, raw agave nectar, and coconut flakes.
As soon as we walked into the door, he began his creation. He made us each a bowl. He said it was the best dessert that he has ever had.

The Flower Cycle

Carson had picked a flower for me to put in water. We were talking about how the flower will die since it had been picked and is no longer in soil. This is what Carson said about that:
"Mom, it is okay that it's going to die because it will go to heaven. Yeah, flower heaven and then come back to the earth and go into the ground and become compost and then grow another flower that will go into heaven and come back to the earth and go into the ground and become compost and then grow into another flower..."
You get the idea.

Robot Costume

Carson decided to make a robot costume. I helped him get a paper grocery bag prepared and he painted it and has plans to make an aluminum foil helmet. He is always so thrilled to be able to build whatever he envisions.

What do we do? Are you kidding??!..

Carson does not watch TV or videos. The first question that people ask is, "What do you do all day??!". Well, today was a stormy day and we decided to stay in (rare for us) and here is a breakdown of our day:

1. Wake up and all three of us snuggle for about 3ominutes
2. Change baby and nurse as Carson declares how excited he is that it is storming...Then I work hard to keep him inside the house while still in PJs with no breakfast
3. Take shower while watching boys play in Master closet (it is huge). During most of the shower, Carson squeals with excitement that Cameron is crawling so fast
4. Sort laundry with Carson and put a load of diapers in the washer
5. Hang out and play in Carson's bedroom while he gets dressed
6. Carson puts today's day on the calendar and tells me what time it is and writes it while I keep Cameron from eating calendar magnets (the little guy is getting FAST!)
7. Cook sprouted cream of spelt while Cameron unloads tupperware drawer and I load dishwasher with Carson's help
8. Eat breakfast and afterwards realize that the kitchen is messier than before I cleaned it. 'sigh'
9. Straighten up kitchen while Carson and Cameron play ball
10. Sit in playroom and build log houses with boys. Carson built and extra-special one for Cameron to destroy and I video tape the demolition
11. Carson decides he wants to make a robot costume (don't know where that idea came from) so we go in the craft room and I cut a head and arm holes from a paper grocery bag while Carson gets his paint clothes on and builds a special rocket out of construction paper. Cameron is teething on craft room chair seats.
12. Get white paint and roller out for Carson to prime his robot bag costume. Carson starts to paint
13. Cameron is tired so I leave Carson to paint while I go to nurse Cameron for his morning nap
14. Check on Carson and per his request, I assist him at painting the bag white. We let that dry and work on the rocket some more
15. We read about 30minutes of Charlotte's Web
16. I fold clothes from dryer and Carson puts diapers from washer into dryer
17. We drink some herbal hot tea and sit on the porch to watch the rain, birds and squirrels. Carson is amazed how quickly our trees are blooming.
18. Have a snack of the banana pudding that I made for St.Patrick's Day I colored it with Spirulina
19. I lay in recliner and snooze for about 7minutes while Carson reads to himself
20. Cameron wakes up and we snuggle him for about 20minutes. Cameron has a dry diaper and he pees in the potty and I put same diaper on. Carson is so excited when Cameron pees in potty.
21. Start to make lunch (tuna/egg salad). Cameron needs to be held, so I wear him. Carson puts on some music and we sing along while he gets ingredients from fridge. Carson whines he is STARVING so he bites the hard boiled eggs before lunch is ready.
22. Eat lunch. Cameron gets some egg yolk which he seems happy about. (still won't sign food)
23. Clean up kitchen (again) and start dishwasher
24. Go outside and get rained on some for fun. Splash in the puddles. Hear thunder and run back inside
25. Carson plays his fancy new 'real' guitar that Daddy bought him. Cameron plays the baby guitar that Carson gave him when he got the 'real' guitar. I play everything else..drums, maracas, triangle, harmonica, cymbols
26. Check on robot costume...yeah! it's dry. Get paints back out so Carson can color his robot.
27. Cameron seems ready for another nap. Carson paints while I go nurse Cameron to sleep.
28. Check on Carson and he is back playing with the logs and a farm set he got out.
29. I make phone calls about camper parts and gutter repairs
29. Together we clean up the craft room up and let the robot dry again
30. Chat with friend on phone while Carson tells me he wants to do glitter
31. Finish chatting with friend and glitter is 'accidentally' all over floor
32. We vaccum glitter and since I have it out, vaccum kitchen, foyer and hallway. Carson helps.
33. We do glitter. Carson made a really nice picture with the sun, moon and grass. We let it dry with the robot.
34. Vaccum glitter (again)
35. We go into family room and clean up the fort that we built 2 days ago. Carson wants to build a different one and I tell him that after we straighten up the playroom, we can.
36. Cameron is up and ready to go. Dry again. Pees on potty.
37. 5min later, Cameron poops in diaper. Oops, maybe next time! Go change diaper.
38. We straighten up the playroom and media room
39. Start getting dinner together and Mark calls and say he's running behind
40. I wear Cameron while I get dinner together. Carson is making up a game where people pay 2cents to watch his swingset show. He is busy making receipts for the people that pay to see his show (my little entrepreneur)
41. Carson is too hungry to wait for Daddy, so we sit down to eat just as Daddy walks in.
42. Daddy takes Cameron to Master closet to change from his work clothes while Carson and I eat.
43. Daddy and Cameron eat and then play together while Carson and I finish Charlotte's Web
44. 1 more chapter to go, but Cameron is ready for bed so I take him while Daddy reads the final chapter
45. After nursing Cameron, Carson wants me to re-read final chapter since it was 'our thing'. I read last chapter.
46. Daddy gets Carson ready for bed and tells stories for 30minutes and it's lights out. It's 9pm.

So, tell me. Where is the time for TV?? This is a day that we were actually home. Typically, we are out playing with friends. I just can't seem to find anything that I would like to cut out of our day to incorporate it. So, we don't watch TV or movies. What do we do?? We live.

Charlotte's Web

We checked out Charlotte's Web from the library last week.
I honestly couldn't remember if I had read it when I was a kid. I also couldn't remember how it ended. Tonight we finished the book and Carson was really upset when Charlotte died. I was pretty misty-eyed too. I felt so bad when Carson's heart broke. I had asked him about 3/4 of the way through if he wanted to continue since it might end up sad (when I thought they might eat Wilber) and he really wanted to continue.
It was a great story of loyalty and friendship and one that I think he'll remember. He'll probably want to start it again tomorrow.

A child's perspective

Carson and I were having a conversation about homeschooling and how fortunate he is that he gets to homeschool. We were talking about how much we appreciate how much Daddy works to allow us to stay home. This is how the conversation concluded:

Me: "I wish I was homeschooled so I could have done all of this cool stuff"
Carson: "You were homeschooled"
Me: "No, I went to school"
Carson: "Why not?"
Me: "My mom had to work"
Carson: "You get to homeschool!"
Me: "I do?"
Carson: "YEAH, Mom...you are homeschooled NOW!"

Cowtown Goes Green

We drove to Fort Worth this weekend to visit Abuelo and Abuela. There was a St.Patrick's Day festival (Cowtown Goes Green) in the Stockyards and we all went. The weather was perfect for being outdoors. Carson played a dulcimer with a street musician and after visiting the petting zoo and checking out the riders on the mechanical bull, we stopped at Booger Red's for a drink and snack. Then we went outside to watch the festival conclude with a parade. It was a great time! Cameron was exhausted when we left and couldn't wait to catch a nap in the van on the way back to the house.

Homeschool open gym

We went to Eagle's Wings Gymnastics last week where they have an open gym twice a month. We went with my friend and her 3 children. All of the children had a good time - we built a fort out of the large pieces and Cameron got to play too :)
I think we'll try to make this gym every time since it is so friendly to babies.

Fun Park Day

Last week at the park, we had a great time. Carson loved hanging out with his friends. In the first picture, the boys all created bows and arrows using sticks. The last picture was slide pile-up. It was a fun game that they played until I had to break it up when too many kids were getting hurt. I think the record was 10 kids going down the slide at the same time. They had a blast while it lasted.

Completing the Garden Beds

We had dirt delivered to fill our garden beds. Carson couldn't believe that a real dump truck came to our house! He was in awe as he watched the bed on the truck rise up to dump the load. Tonight he planted marigolds in the corner of his little garden bed. I am no gardener, but I think they are great for organic gardens because they keep insects out of your garden. Mark has the green thumb in the family.

Our new camper!

Some women want diamonds, fancy cars and designer clothes. Not this one. The only thing that I dreamed of is a popup camper....and my dream has come true!!
I love camping and continue the tradition with my boys. However, I do enjoy comfort and I have had it with sleeping on the ground. Breastfeeding on a blowup mattress is the most uncomfortable thing! I am so excited to have a bed to sleep in :)
Well, on Saturday we opened it up to clean it and load it up for our next camping trip (probably next month). Abuelo and Abuela were over for a visit from Fort Worth. They played with the boys and helped set the camper up. Between the camper and my parents' visit, Carson was bouncing off the walls with excitement. I was pretty excited too. Here are the pictures of the camper and my parents visit:

Dancing to traffic?

Cameron has always really liked music. Lately, he lets us know just how much. He dances to EVERYTHING! Anytime he hears music or something that can be mistaken as such, he starts dancing. It is so cute. While Carson played the keyboard, he was rocking his head back and forth so hard while standing up, that he knocked himself over (again and again). One day after getting out of the car in a parking lot, he started dancing by shaking his head back and forth and swinging his arms. I couldn't understand why he was doing that until I realized he was dancing to the freeway noise! Mark, Carson and I were cracking up!! I'll try to catch it on video and upload soon. What a sweetie :)

And then there were two little cooks...

Cameron decided that he wanted to start helping with the pancakes that Daddy cooks. He just barely fits in the learning tower with Carson. Carson was so proud to have his brother with him.

Gift-making

Carson's friend is turning 10 and he is really into robots. So Carson decided to make him a birthday gift - a robot and a knife. We really love having a room designated for crafts. Carson just goes in and creates the most amazing things. He really wanted me to take a video of him working on his creation. So, here goes....
Update: I uploaded a picture of Carson giving his friend his robot. He was so excited.

Playday

A friend of mine has just had her 6th and final child (2 of them are grown) and they came over for a playday today. Carson loves them and it was such a fun day. The baby is so cute. Cameron decided to sit this one out and take a nap.

Going Bonkers

We went to this really neat family fun center called Going Bonkers. Carson and Cameron had a great time with their friends.