Playroom Makeover

We've lived in New Strawn for almost a year now, and all the time I've never been terribly happy with the playroom. It is one of those rooms that is an odd shape and is just really hard to figure out where to put things to make them both functional and aesthetically pleasing. We spend a good deal of time in the playroom, and I've been meaning to make some changes for a while. I dug up an old photo of the playroom, it really hadn't changed much other than the rug going away via cat pee, and some new toys. And up until this weekend even the tape around the room was still there.

Given a weekend too myself while everyone else was visiting family in Omaha I had a long list of things I wanted to get done. Fall is here, and I had started bringing out the winter clothes from last year, seeing what the boys would still fit in etc. I had planned a weekend of washing clothes, going through drawers and closets. However after thinking about the winter weather to come, and realizing I had something I wanted so much more than to go through the clothes. The playroom. We have been taking advantage of the nice weather outside, spending time in the back yard, the park, going on walks, and even a short nature walk. But I know that the cold weather is not too far away, and we will be spending quite a bit more time at home, inside.


Step 1: Find a good Friend :) I had planned on this project taking me all weekend but I also knew that I would do much more and keep working if I had someone to talk to. My wonderful friend Heidi came over and helped me paint the chalk board wall and the border around the room.

Step 2: Find new shelving. I have these dreams of certain kinds of shelves, all matching, with places up high that the kids can't reach, places where I can lock things away etc. But they had to stay dreams. Yet there was still a problem with not having space... this is going to be even more of an issue when getting new toys and Christmas. However... the real solution is to get rid of some of the toys. Hopefully over then next couple months I can determine what the kids actually play with. There are a few toys that even when put in storage and taken out and excitedly played with for an hour then get tossed aside again. And some of the most simple garage sale toys can be favorites! We had a shelf left in the storage area from the previous owners that was holding toys that got taken away for fighting, or just put away because they didn't used. So I brought it out and spent a good hour or so trying to clean it. I've decided I want to repaint it, but that's a project for another day.

Step 3: Spend more time than all of the above going through toys, putting them in new places, moving furniture around, deciding it doesn't work, moving it again, over and over and over. I'm still not sure that the final way is how things will stay. Some of it will be trial and error with what works with the kids actually using it. I did figure out that the room looked a lot better if putting something right in the middle. We don't really need the seating that we have down here, I'm the only one that really sits on the couches. Maybe that would change if we got a better TV, but that is not in my budget anytime soon. But having a couch in the middle made the long awkward room look more like two rooms and less weird. Whether it stays or not is still to be determined. The playpen type thing probably won't stay up all the time... but who knows. Right now it is Charlotte's safe place, a place I can set her and not worry about the boys tripping over her or trying to smoother her. And I'm sure the slide and trampoline will make there way back in the playroom before too long too. Need some outlets for that winter energy :) But for now this is what I ended up with. No writing on the chalkboard wall yet... the curing process for that will take a while. But maybe some new fun pictures of that up later!

The End of Vacation

Today was our first day back from our whirlwind traveling the past two weeks. It has been a little bittersweet to be back. In a lot of ways it's nice to be home, sleep in our own beds, let the kids roam around the house without following them everywhere worrying about them destroying someone else's things. It's also great to see friends and catch up with the people we haven't seen since we've been gone. But as Matthew put it today "Home is not fun." We do a lot of fun things around here, but it isn't quite the same as doing fun things somewhere else. A lot of the things we did on our trip were pretty normal, things like going to the park. Though going to a new park brings new exploration and adventure and compared to that our normal parks just don't seem as fun. We went to a wonderful indoor water park, but I had a hard time getting them excited about going swimming tomorrow. Matthew said "The rec center is not a fun pool."

So maybe we were a little spoiled and had a lot of fun on our trip. There weren't many things I can complain about. Everyone keeps commenting on how brave or crazy I was to do the cross country trip with two toddlers. But I wouldn't have changed a thing, and I must say the boys were GREAT! I couldn't have gotten better behavior out of them if I bribed them with candy :) We all had a wonderful time. And I would turn around and go again tomorrow if we could!

We're home now, and Matthew is doing his same "And then what?" questions. What are we going to do today, and then what, and then what. My answers did not impress him, even though we did have a fun morning at storytime, the park and out for lunch. Being home there are dishes to be done, laundry, cleaning... and while we somehow must have done all these things on our trip, I don't remember those parts very much ;)

The staying quiet in the morning didn't go so well this morning, but we'll find out when Matt and Sarah wake up how much we disturbed them. Matthew knew they were home, he has put together that when the cars are here they are here too, and did go in wanting Mommy to play with him. Maybe we'll have to start hiding the cars ;) Actually... one could fit in the garage now! So now I'm starting to sit down with a calendar and figure out what the next few weeks look like for us. I'm hoping to make a few shorter trips, like up to Omaha to go to the indoor waterpark and Zoo with my sister and nephew. Hopefully some Topeka and Kansas City trips with friends from around here, and who knows what all we can come up with.

Time to make being home just as fun as vacation!

On the Road!

It really seems like this trip is flying by! We left New Strawn on Saturday and it's already Friday night! It's been almost a week, but it feels like such a short time. We've had a great time. We haven't reached our final destination (Alexandria, VA/Washington DC) yet, but should pull in sometime tomorrow evening. Tonight we are camped out in Columbus Ohio.

Since leaving New Strawn, Kansas we have driven 1539.8 miles. From Kansas, to Omaha, to Kearney and then on the road to DC! The boys have been AMAZING! I really mean that, and not just better than I expected, but great travelers period. Matthew has been quite the trooper, never complaining, always having fun and smiling. The only time he has gotten in "trouble" lately has been for being so excited he ends up screaming. Well I take that back... he did have one little bout of crying at dinner tonight because he didn't get a cheesey taco (his favorite at Amigos in Nebraska).... at Texas Roadhouse. He was convinced that had them, it was weird. He has watched movies, played with toys and games and has only asked once to stop to go to the bathroom other than our scheduled stops. Ian has been great too, he gets upset sometimes when he drops his cup or his blanket on the ground. But has improved tremendously since the beginning of the trip and no longer cries for it, but uses his words! Cup! Fuzzy! Please! even Thank you! He's added a few words to his vocabulary. Juicy, Unbuckle, Apple, and a bunch of others... we really should have written down all the things he's been saying.

What we've done so far:
Saturday - Drive to Omaha, Amanda's Pampered Chef Party, Drive to Kearney
Sunday - Church, Barbecue, Reid's Eagle Scout Ceremony, Play at home, Amigos
Monday - Go to the Mall, Yanney Park, Early Head Start
Tuesday - Ballocity, Yanney again, playing soccer and jumping on the trampoline
Wednesday - Children's museum, lunch at Hunans, playing at home and the park
Thursday - Packing, blowing bubbles, Drove to Iowa City
Friday - Parks, nature walks, Texas Roadhouse, and the drive to Columbus Ohio

And that's just the stuff I can remember quickly off the top of my head! We've done a lot, had a great time and also had time to help Melody with homework and Reid with scholarships. There is still a week ahead of us as well. I hope we have as good of a week as we've had so far. I'm already feeling sad about the trip ending. But hopefully we'll have a lot of fun trips ahead of us as well. I'm definitely ready for more after how well this one has gone! And if you don't believe me about how great the boys have been, ask Melody :) I think I expected at least some crying and whining... though we still have one more day of driving, so hopefully I am not speaking too soon.

Hopefully people have been following our pictures on facebook. I've posted a ton, and plan to post a lot more. Though I forget to take pictures of some things :( Hopefully Melody's pictures will fill in the blanks too. We have some fun videos as well, but have had some pretty slow connections at our hotels. Maybe sometime when we're bored... lol, yeah that hasn't happened yet!

Packing Day

We're getting ready for a big trip and I'm filled with a mix of emotions. I'm very excited to get to see family for a few days, some good friends, and a lot of scenery. It also makes me a little nervous to be going on such a long trip. Though it's funny as I talk to people about going everyone thinks it's brave to be taking to kids and a teenager on a 3000 mile road trip. Honestly though, the kids have nothing to do with me being nervous. I love to travel, and the boys are so much fun. Melody will be such a help with the boys and we will all have a great time. Singing in the car, watching movies, stopping at new places, taking fun pictures... yes there will probably be some times where sitting in the car will be long... but then we'll get out. There will be times when things are boring, but we'll find something to do. All part of my plan of taking 3 days to do the big drive, plenty of flex time to have fun while going.

I am more nervous about a lot of little things, like forgetting things places... not just forgetting them at home, but forgetting them at a hotel or somewhere else. Nervous about having car trouble or the weather being bad. But when it all comes down to it I'm mostly excited. If something goes wrong we'll deal with it when we come to it. If plans get messed up we'll make new ones. If Melody has to miss a day or two of school I'm sure she won't mind ;)

Our trip will start tomorrow with a "short" trip as we head to Omaha. Short meaning a 4 hour drive... which depending on your definition can be a short trip or a long one, but compared to the driving coming later in the week... it really is a short trip. I'm hoping to keep somewhat of a log of our journey and adventures, and of course a lot of pictures! I'm packing two cameras just to be safe! And Melody will have her's too!

But for now I'm working on the task of deciding the best way to pack the van, which toys to bring and which to stay home, how to make the best use of space, and hoping that I don't forget anything too major. Despite it's bulk the double stroller is coming with us... I believe it will be a life saver as we attempt to see some of the sites of Washington DC!

Read Read Read

Lately I have been obsessed with reading. Like most things my hobbies have phases. I will sew, sew, sew for two weeks and then get so sick of it that I'll move onto something else. I may make 30 baby hats for my mom and then move onto scrap booking. But lately the kick I have been on has been reading. I think a big part of this is because for Erin's Christmas/Birthday present I bought her a kindle. It just so happened that the day it arrived her tech savvy father was away on business and not wanting to lose the joy of the first fun day with a new toy, I registered her under my account. I figured that I would do that so she could start reading and then eventually her parents would move her onto their account. This hasn't happened yet and I'm so GLAD! It has allowed me to share the books I've downloaded with her, and has also made me seek out books that she would really enjoy, and in the end so have I! It has been a great way to read, and then we always have things to talk about. For a long time we would just share the occasional phone conversation or text message, and now I hear from her so much more. We get to share things about books we loved, and also talk about books we've heard might be really good.

So lately my kick has been reading, and mostly Young Adult fiction. I told Erin I would buy her her first book of her choosing. Her friends had been reading "Hunger Games" and that was the book she wanted me to buy first. Let me tell you... I bought the first book for her.... but the next two in the series I totally bought for me :) We both read and loved the series and now Sarah is immersed in the second book as well. I think one of the things I love about Young Adult fiction is that it is an easy read, something that you can slip into so easily. Not that many Adult fiction books won't do this as well, but I just love young adult books. In the past month I have read

The Hunger Games
Catching Fire
Mockingjay
Books 1-4 of the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson
The Lost Gate - By Orson Scott Card
The Invention of Hugo Cabret - by Brian Selznick

That's 9 books in 4 weeks. And that doesn't count the dozen or so books that I've read the first chapter or two of (kindle lets you preview books for free) and now I have a whole list of books I want to read. I checked out a few at the library today, requested a few others, and bought another one on my kindle.

I've also noticed a change in the boys over this time too. I haven't taken reading to an extreme where I'm neglecting them by any means, but they do see me reading much more. I generally read during breakfast, they usually wake up from nap to find me reading, I'll read while they are playing in the bath, in the evenings etc. Matthew has picked up books much more often and wanted me to read to him, or asked me what I was reading, and Ian has shown more interest and patience in reading too.

It's great all around!

Shopping Days = Kid Playdays?

So, we headed out for a trip to Olathe/Overland Park today to do some shopping. One of the last things on the list was to try and hit Monkey Bizness or somewhere for the kids to play. When I thought about it I realized this is quite a habit, always trying to hit a mall with a playplace or a gym or McDonald's with a climber. Does everyone do this?

The point of the day really is to get the shopping done, eat out somewhere and just get out of town for the day. Like most times when traveling with kids they are taken into account for everything. You have to eat at a kid friendly place, or the very least a place that at least has a kids menu. Most of the time you end up at a fast food place with chicken nuggets. You don't get to shop around at stores as long as you'd like because the kids get cranky. And there are many more trips the the bathroom, though I have become accustomed to changing a diaper in the back of the van fairly frequently. So you call it a success if you've made it to most of the places you wanted, and got most of the things you set out to get. But then there is this weird guilt that sets in that makes you search out a playplace or park or gym etc. You feel bad for taking them to all the places you needed to go and try and make it up to them by spoiling them with playplaces or mall cookies, or things along that line.

So my question is, is this really necessary? We tend to go somewhere almost every weekend, usually needing to hit walmart or some other store because we live in a little town. Maybe we are a little spoiled and should just suck it up and go to Hoovers more often, but all the same it's become something that happens at least weekly. I think back to my childhood and am pretty sure we didn't get to eat out weekly much less go to playplaces and movies and other fun places. And I don't really feel like I missed out or angry at the times when I went shopping with my parents. I'm sure there was a certain level of complaining and frustration, but at the same time shopping was often fun! As we were walking around today I realized that there is really some quality time spent on these weekend excursions. The kids get more one on one attention than they often do during the week. They chat and talk to you all day instead of encouraging them to go play while you try and get the dishes done, or clean up messes or toys, or work on other things. Matthew got many more "why?" and "what's that?" questions answered. So why do we feel this guilt that we need to take them somewhere? We didn't actually make it to Monkey Bizness today and while it led to a 3 minute meltdown, that was it. Had he not expected to go would he really feel like he had missed anything? We make so many trips just for the kids, going to the pumpkin patch, the park, to see Santa, to do something for their benefit.

On the way home Sarah and I talked about the day and feeling a little guilty that the kids didn't get more time to play. I realized I felt less guilty probably because every other day of the week revolves around them. Our entire schedule revolves around playdates, swimming, storytimes, playing at home, gymnastics, tap, even what we eat. I think I feel less guilty about taking them around shopping and focusing on the adults a little more every once in a while. They had fun, we rode the Carousel at the mall, something that would have been a HUGE treat for me as a child, though they almost expect it. We ate at Panera an McDonalds, they got to ride around in the stroller and carts, watch movies in the van, get pretzels and snacks, pick out birthday plates and favors, look at toys. I think all in all it was a good day.

What about you? Do your trips involve a kid activity? Do you feel guilty if your entire trip revolves around going to walmart and maybe a department store? Do you always add in some extra fun element like an "I'm sorry we went shopping" device?

Television

It's a constant topic of conversation among parents, caregivers, psychologists, doctors, teachers... how much TV do we let the kids watch? It seems so simple but it can be a constant struggle. I've heard a general consensus that kids shouldn't watch more than an hour of tv a day. Does that happen at your house? I'm sad to say that doesn't happen here. As many fun games we play, places we go, toys, crafts, singing, and all the other things we do... we still end up with more than an hour of tv each day. There's this saying "don't let the tv babysit your kids" I'll be the first to admit I do exactly that. It's not because I'm being lazy and not wanting to play with the boys. It's because there are things that need done and having them underfoot isn't helpful. Meals are my primary weekness, especially dinner. About an hour before dinner I put on a show or movie because I know it will entertain Matthew while I make dinner. We have it on more than I'd like, but I rationalize it with the fact that I never put junk on. We watch Adventures in Odyssey, Gerbert, Brainy Baby, and Seseme Street. I record the occasional Ni Hao Kai Lan, and Chuggington as well.

Educational tv has come a long way... but I probably disagree with a lot of people on what qualifies as educational tv. Almost every show out there puts something in it so that it can fall under this category. I do not like most Nick Jr shows. Yes they are educational.... sort of. And I can't tell you what exactly I dislike about these shows... something about them rubs me the wrong way. We watch an occasional Ni Hao Kai Lan... but it's just because it's the least offensive to me somehow. I don't care for the disney shows either. About the best I can find is the PBS shows. What is it about the others that bothers me so much? Maybe part of it is the commercialization. Not only do those channels have worst commercials they make tons of toys and other JUNK. And that's the last thing you need a kid screaming for in the store :)

I debate about how much of tv is a learned behavior. I think some kids are just drawn to it more than others. Matthew will get so sucked into a show, he can literally sit still for an abnormally long time watching some movie or show. Ian on the other hand could care less what is on most of the time, and gets very angry at certain shows when they are on. He is drawn to shows with music, letters and shapes. Matthew will watch just about anything. I keep wondering if Ian will gravitate towards the vegging out or if he will remain not as interested in what is on the tv. My favorite things to put on are things like baby einstein, not because I have this belief that it will make kids smarter, but because it is simply images put to music.

Anyway... Matthew and Ian watch too much tv. They watch probably a total of about 60-100 minutes just while I"m taking care of them during the day... which doesn't count whatever they watch in the evening with their parents. If it would have made a difference I would have made a new year's resolution to watch less tv... but it's part of life. In some ways it helps me keep my sanity too... it's what entertains me in the evenings, living in a small town, with nothing to do, and no one to play games with. How much tv do your kids watch?