Miller Day Camp

Well, I ran my first unofficial day camp yesterday.  We had a litlte get together with some of Seth's mom's family.  She told me, "just keep them busy."  So that's what I did.  I had so much fun gathering ideas, supplies, materials, and finally getting to do some projects I've wanted to do.
I had so many activities planned, but sadly, the day was not long enough (nor was the kids energy after so many hours outside!)
We started our day out after a yummy lunch.  We headed out front to enjoy the bike carwash Mom had helped me build.  It turned out so great.  It was a little frustrating to get the legistics right.  I'm the type that has an idea and justs wants to do it.  It was fun to draw it out, go to Home Depot and get what I needed.  It made me feel so "able". 
I was just a little drill happy with the holes so the water wasn't able to pass up and to the other side.  Dad helped me attach another hose to the other side, and after replacing some very holey poles it was great.
The kids played in that thing forever.  It was great.  We had so many different bikes and scooters and jeeps and bigwheels for them to ride it was fun to watch.  I was happy to see that Chloe loved it too.  Her cousin, Madi was so great to ride with her the whole time so she could enjoy it.
Here she is getting a wet sponge to the face!

Chloe trying to cover her face as the cold streamers get her.

More cute Chloe.

I love how you can see the water spraying her here. 

James loved the bike wash too.  He definately went at his own pace.  It was cute to watch him just casually ride through and take his time to go again as everyone else was speeding around to go again.

The place we chose in the side walk was great.  It had a little slope to it and created an awesome puddle to add to the effect.

More cute James.

Here comes Sam.

He started off on his scooter and then realized he could go much faster on his bike.

With the speed came the rooster tail.  He thought he was so cool.  (I tried to get it, but it is a pretty wide shot.)

Had to get everyone going through.  This will definately be making many more appearances.  It just pulls apart and stores easily, so I can't wait until we bust it out in our neighborhood!

We then moved on to an activity in the shade to bring it down a notch.  I had drawn little stories on rocks for the kids to paint.  This was so fun for me.  I did the "3 little pigs", a fairy tale theme, and a pet shop.  These are perfect to keep in your sand box to play with.

I also made a big paint shirt with their name on it for each kid to wear while painting.  They loved them and were soon painting those as well and having each other sign them.  It was cute to see how excited they got about a t-shirt suvenior from their fun family day.

Chloe loved that I was just letting her loose to get messy and paint. 

Sam and James did great too.  I was super surprized that Sam got so into it due to his usual lack of enhusiasm for art.

He painted a very awesome "big bad wolf" that he was very proud of.

From there it was time for a game so we headed to the back yard to throw darts at balloons that were filled with treats.  The kids had a good time with this.

It got a little harded as the board got more scare so we let them move closer and closer and closer until we finally just let them poke the balloons with the dart.  They each loaded their goody bags with treats and giggled at their loot! :)

And since we didn't get enough candy from the balloons we had to make candy necklaces.  This was so fun.  I put out a variety of circle candy and cereal for them to choose from.  Chloe mostly just walked around and snacked while I worked on hers.

James was way into this activity.  He took his time and chose his candy carefully.

Chloe showing off her "pretties".

We didn't quite measure James' string right, or it was just the fact that he kept messing up his string and we kept having to cut it, but he ended up with a candy crown! :)

He thought it was fun for a while, but we had to eventually cut it and lengthen it so he could actually snack on it.  (Love his little face!  So cute!)

We then moved on to ice fossils.  I froze little animal figureens in water balloons to make these babies.  I only made a dozen, not thinking they would be so popular.  Boy was I wrong.  You should have seen the kids grab a hammer and start smashing and chipping away at their ice to get their prize.  We gave them real hammers and spread them all around the grass.  I think they felt empowered with a real tool in their little hands!  Next time I do this I will defiantely be doing many more!

Sam working hard to get his animal out.

James was a little timid at first, but soon realized that he really could just wack it.

James had a few pieces of ice that just wouldn't get off.

We then cooled off again by playing tag with sponge balls I made.  They were awesome.  They held so much water and were so cool, soft and refreshing when they smashed on you. 

We then went fishing for balls that had points and got more prizes.  The kids had fun being able to pick prizes out of the bins and add them to their loot.
We ended the evening by making glow bugs.  These were simply decorated plastic bottles.  They turned out so cute.  After they were decorated we put water in them and a glow stick.  They glowed well and surprizingly this activity was one of their favorites as well.

Here's James bug.

Chloe loved hers so much she had to sleep with it!

I had so much fun putting this together and spending the day with the kids.  I don't know how I will be able to live up to the bar I set myself if we ever do this again, but it will be fun trying.  One of the most validating thing of the day was when Dani, the kid's cousin, said, "this is so much better and funner than the arcade!"  I knew I was doing good when I heard that! :)

I Have a Frog in My Throat

Sam and James were watching a show and heard someone say that they had a frog in their throat.  This was a new saying for them and it took a very long conversation with them to get them to understand what it really meant and that they person did not really have a frog in their throat.
Well, they have been obsessed with that saying lately (of course) and I happend to over hear James telling Sam that he had a frog in his throat.
I was so glad I was able to catch Sam verifying for James that he didn't really have a frog in his throat and that everything would be okay! :)

Wishing You a Fan{tache}tic Father's Day

Yes, that's the corny line I wrote in Seth's card this year.  There was a mustache on the front, so I just had to write it!
We had a nice relaxing Father's Day today. The kids helped me make Seth some cute things and were excited to give him his surprises.

 They picked out his favorite candy bar (Caramelos) and each gave him one.  They also gave him some "pop its" and told him he was the best pop around. (They later enjoyed that gift themselves!) :)

 They also filled out a cute little father's day survey with my help.  They were so funny.  (Hope you can read them in the picture).

Then came their pride and joy.  They helped me make a "back rub" shirt for him. 

 We wrote on the front for him and each signed our names (with a little help!) :)

 And on the back we drew a map with all of their favorite places. (Our house, grandma's, the train yard, Disneyland, WalMart, the park, the lake, and the Treasure Museum)

They then got big monster trucks and drove around on the roads to give Dad a nice back rub.  He loved it and so did they.

 We wrapped up the morning with his favorite breakfast, Egg in a Hole.

 The kids were all tuckered our from such an early and exciting morning so we let them have a picnic breakfast and watch a show before having to get ready for church.

We love the Dad in our house so much!  He is awesome.  He takes such good care of us, does so many fun things with us, takes us on such great vacations, helps us learn and grow, and makes us laugh everyday!  Happy Father's Day Seth!  We love ya lots!

(Chloe's drawing from Nursery.  So cute!)

Such a Hard Life!

My kids have it so easy!...especially when it comes to being at their Grandma and Grandpa M's house.  They love going to their grandparent's house, and rightfully so; they have awesome grandparents!  The kids have formed quite the routine there.  It's trains with Grandpa, treats, nuggets, pink drink, (and anything else they can possibly dream up) from Grandma.
Now that it's summer we get to be there at least once a week while Seth does the yard work.  Grandma has so many fun toys and activities for the kids to play and do. 
I just had to snap a shot today because it was cracking me up that they not only had one pool to play in and cool off in, but they had two.  Now if that's not Grandma's style, I don't know what is! :)
We couldn't ask for better Grandparents for our kids!

Silly Sleepover

We had a great time this last week with my sister and her kids.  Her oldest, Mitch, and her husband, Ben were on a camp out, so we decided to have a sleep over with her and the rest of the gang.
After our workout I brought the girls home with me and we had a great afternoon.  We rode bikes in the alley and I introduced my kids to silly string.  They loved it.  I had it ready for when the were riding by and I got them good!  Poor Sam ate it hard core as he was so surprised, but I have to admit, it was pretty funny! :)
I then got cans out for all of them and they had fun chasing each other around and getting covered. 

 From the silly string wars we moved on to playing at the "beach".  They had fun in the shade making castles while I....

 ...periodically nailed them with a "rainstorm."  They would shriek and giggle and yell for me to stop...and when I would then they would shout for more!

 We then dried off and had fun drawing on the tramp.  Megan showed them that they could draw on the bottom too.  They thought that was funny and had a good time trying to create upside down masterpieces.

 Josh and Ethan came up later for dinner and we all settled down to "America's Funniest Home Videos".  This is Sam's new favorite show.  We had a great time laughing at other and hanging out together.
The next morning we were "up and at 'em."  We wasted no time getting outside and enjoying the nice morning.  Everyone had a bike, or vehicle of some sort and had fun making laps around the block.  Josh made a "train" that was enjoyed by almost all.  After a lap, Chloe was done with that thing and couldn't wait to get out.

 Sam and James on the other hand loved it and could have stayed in there all day.

 As soon as it warmed up a bit we introduced Joy's family to sprinklers under the tramp.  They all had fun getting wet and slipping everywhere.  Chloe was a trooper.  I love these shots of her jumping and bouncing all over the place.  Poor thing is like a Chihuahua surrounded by German Sheppards - she has no idea she's the little dog.

We finished off the day with obstacle races.  We set out a course in the yard and timed everyone running around nets and the playhouse, through the swings, down the slide, under the tramp....  I should have thought of this before!  It made the kids nice and tired and they slept so well!

Megan, Joy and I got to sneak away before they had to go and get some fun shopping done.  We found some cute stuff and had fun shopping as just us girls!  It made me so anxious for Chloe to get older so we could have shopping trips like this together! :) 
We had so much fun with our cousins and were so sad when they had to leave.  Hopefully we'll have another sleepover soon and enjoy these long summer days and nights together!

If You'd Like to Make a Call...

When at my sister's today I came in the room to find Chloe doing this:
She would make a call on Haley's play phone,

 Start talking to someone,

 And then get super excited about their conversation.

It was so cute.  I just stood there silently and watched her play.  I love when I am able to observe their play without disrupting it.  Their personalities really shine and it makes my day to see them being creative and imaginative.

Rubber Duckie, You're the One

Chloe LOVES ducks.  I don't know what got her in to them, but she has a special place in her heart for them that's for sure. 
Bath time is one of her favorite parts of the day.  It is probably due to the fact that she has a gazillion ducks!  She likes to line all of her ducks up and carefully choose which one she will play with.  When she's done with it she will carefully put it back and choose another one.  It's so cute.  She is actually getting a few of her colors down now thanks to these little friends!

Our Park, I Mean Water Park

Yesterday was a LONG day, to say the least.  My workout got moved up a half hour and it takes a half hour to get there, so we ran out the door jammies, bed head and all.
My kids love Thursdays because they get to play at their cousins house and I love Thursdays because I get to be with my sister.
After a fun day there we ran back in time for piano lessons.  Then there was a little time to play outside in the sprinkler and then it was off around the neighborhood to deliver all the updated primary binders to all the new teachers (our ward just split).
My kids were troopers.  They were so hot and tired of our long "walk" so I told them we could stop at the park and play for a bit.
They made the most of it and soon discovered what can be done with a crazy water fountain.  They had so much fun shooting themselves in the faces with the cool water.  I guess it looked fun to a boy who has passing by because he came and joined in the fun.  I would apologize to his mother if I knew her because he ended up just as soaked, but was in nice clothes.  Oooops.  At least they had fun.