Cool in the Pool

Corbin has been continuing his swim lessons for several months now and loves them!

He’s always so excited to come out and tell me what he did by himself that day in lessons.

The instructors have been great and I know that Corbin is learning a valuable skill in becoming a proficient swimmer.

So here’s a peek into some of his swim lesson:

(These pictures are taken through a window since parents aren’t allowed in during lessons, so they aren’t the best but it works.)

Kicked back and floating!

 

Arms up for that perfect form.

 

Kicking, kicking, kicking!

 

It’s all good on the yellow mat! 

(This is how they practice breathing.  They have them blow bubbles in the water and then turn their head to the side on their ear.)

 

Chillin’ with the girls!

This is my favorite.  His class is all girls so it’s so cute when they all pile on this big foam hippo and float around.  On it they practice kicking, breathing, and bubbles.  It’s SO cute (which is why I have dedicated the most pictures to this of course)!

We love swim lessons!

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

 

Stomp Rocket

I have been waiting and waiting to open one of Corbin’s birthday gifts because I thought I needed Chris to help me.  But every time Chris was around it was raining, very windy, or we were busy.

So yesterday morning it was beautiful and I decided to put my “big girl panties” on and try this gift  out myself.

The gift is a stomp rocket and just that name alone suggested that Chris would be helpful.  But nevertheless, I bravely grabbed the box and went outside to put this thing together.

I didn’t know what to expect, but to my great and utter relief it was super easy to put together and use!  There were only 3 steps and they were all basically pushing pieces together….no tools, no complicated diagrams…yea! 

So, if I had just read the box and looked at the instructions earlier I really would have saved myself some worry and trepidation about this whole toy and done it way sooner.  But oh well:)

After putting it together I tried it out.  It’s really as the name sounds.  You stomp on a pad and the rocket flies….really high actually.  It was fun!

Corbin and I had a blast stomping and watching the rocket fly.  Well, most of the time we watched it fly.  Corbin did have some less then stellar stomps that resulted in less then desired heights;)

I believe Corbin’s face captures the joy he had of watching the rocket launch up into the air!

This is an excellent toy that I would highly recommend.  I’m sure if you are all into science you could probably have a wonderful lesson on what science properties are being exhibited…but I’m not so much into that….I need Chris for that;)

If you’re looking for a great summer activity try the Stomp Rocket…it’s a blast!

Standing Up

Sorry Corbin. I’m apologizing in advance for this post. This might be one, that as you get older you think I did not have to document, but I did.

We took the next step in potty training. I’d been putting it off because….I am a girl, I hadn’t thought about it, he’s always done it this way, why change?? 

For whatever the reason Corbin has never stood up to pee. I taught him how to go sitting down when the whole potty training experience started and it’s never changed from that.

Last week we visited Corbin’s preschool that he’ll be attending next year and we got onto the topic of bathrooms. Basically, the teachers don’t help the kids. No pulling down pants, no pulling up pants, no wiping…no help at all. Yikes! This mommy has been doing all of that.

So this led to operation “bathroom school ready”! That’s right, we have goals and missions in this house:)  I knew we had these summer months to get this kid trained and ready to use the bathroom all by himself.

I began with the pant pulling issue. After a little resistance – because hey, who wants to do the work when it’s always been done for you – he got that down fairly well.

Then we moved to the second phase: standing while peeing.  I handed this one off to Chris…I figured he was the expert in the house;) 

This new concept was met with crying and great resistance.  However, after a few days Corbin now can pee standing up.

Now I have another problem…he wants to pee ALL. THE. TIME.  He loves it!  Heck, I love it!  It’s SOOOO convenient and easy to have him standing.  Being a boy seems pretty good;)

So I’m happy to announce that I now have a 3 year old who can fully potty himself and stand while peeing.  I know, people….it’s amazing.

Wordless Wednesday

Warmer Days

The weather is finally warming up and we can walk out of the house without a coat.  The sun has been shining for several days in a row and the smell of summer is in the air.

So we took advantage of the nice weather and met some friends at a local garden.

The kids had a great time running around, playing, and soaking up the sunshine.

After our morning of adventures we loaded up the crew and had lunch together.  Let’s just say it’s never dull eating with 4 kids 3 and under….it really was fun:)

It was a wonderful day of spending time outside with friends.  I’m ready for summer and more days like this one!

Wonderstruck

 Wonderstruck by Brain Selznick is on the 2013-2014 William Allen White Award list recommended for 3rd-5th graders.

I picked it up and read it less then two days!  It was one of the most interesting written children’s books I’ve read in awhile.

The book has two storylines.  One is about Ben and the other is about Rose.  Ben’s story takes place in the ‘70s using words while Rose’s story is during the late‘20s told in black and white illustrations. 

The two storylines are intertwined throughout the book and have a touching connection at the end. 

What I liked the best as a reader was figuring out why these two stories were being told in the same book.  As I read I knew they must connect so finding the clues and putting the story together was fun and engaging.

It’s unique to have one entire plot line told in illustrations. I know that some adults or older kids shy away from books with illustrations, but don’t.  This book proves that a picture can contain an infinite amount of information and tell a story sometimes better then words.

The book is huge, 637 pages long, but it goes fast because of the numerous pages of illustrations.  So don’t let the size scare young readers off. 

I believe this would be an ideal summer read for parents and kiddos to do together.  There are so many opportunities to have discussion and make predications about what is going to happen.

I highly recommend you check this book out for an interesting and engaging read.  I think you will love it!

The House of Books

Yesterday I walked into Corbin’s room to get him from his quiet time and I saw this:

He had built our house out of books.  It actually looked really cool and I was impressed with his creativity.  We’d never done anything like that.

I even got a grand tour.  There is his room, mom and dad’s room, windows, a kitchen, and wait for it…a sump pump.  This kid is obsessed with those lately.  I know it’s odd, but who am I to judge;)

But what I liked the most was his reflection about this project.  He told me that it was really hard to build and that he had to keep trying to get it built.

Oh yeah Corbin!  Those are attributes I always want him to carry with him: hard work and perseverance.

Wordless Wednesday

 

Cut and Build

We (and by we I mean Corbin) is all into working on his cutting skills. 

So I created varying lines for him to follow and cut and then he took a big piece of paper and did some free cutting.

As he was nearing the end of his cutting marathon I began picking up the pieces to throw away.  But Corbin had grander plans for the scrapes.

He wanted to build with them.

This was his final creation.

I’m sure it’s obvious what it is, but just in case you have an untrained eye I’ll explain;)

These paper scrapes were expertly pieced together to build our new house.  There are windows, doors, a foundation, and roof.  Really everything you need in a house.

Thanks Corbin, I love our new house!

Dual Purpose

Workbench…Kitchen…it can be a blurry line. 

But I guess when the cuisine coming out of the workbench/kitchen is a hotdog then it all kind of works;)