Little Things Excite Me

Like these bargains at the local Dollar Store......bins for organizing Evan's toys.

I have plans for these frames for Christmas gifts that I'll post details about later.

These toddler/preschool activity books are so great because they are characters that Evan loves! And the flashcards are simple little games to play with him. Look! That's his little hand. He's so excited, he can't wait to get his hands on this stuff!

The items in the picture below I plan on incorporating into our Teatimes. The larger frames will be used to frame a holy card. We will embellish them in some way having to do with the saint! And the wooden rectangles with the ribbons are just the right size for decoupaging a holy card onto. And there is room for a prayer to be glued on the back. These come in a 10 pack for $1.

I also came upon a few things that I just couldn't resist. They were just too pretty (and cheap). There is a soft pastel floral clipboard that is just the right size for a medium notepad or notecards to list daily tasks or a shopping list. And the other floral clips and pushpins were just a little treat for myself.

And speaking of bargains.....Wal-mart has spiral notebooks at 5 Cents a piece! That means 20 for $1!

See, I told you, little things excite me.

TTFN

~Tina

Scenes from a Summer's Day

Scenes from a Summer's Day

After all of the illnesses we've been going through, lately, we finally made it out to enjoy some summer fun!

We went to a local waterpark to enjoy this sunny, superhot day.

Everyone had a blast!

After the summer we've had, this was just what the doctor ordered!

Hope you are enjoying your Summer days!

Stop by Renee's to see her beautiful Scenes from a Summer's Day photos! And check her sidebar for other Summer's Day participants!

TTFN

~Tina

Happy Birthday to Beatrix Potter!

Skylar and Alexa and I read many of her stories together this past school year. They loved them all and still wonder if that is "Squirrel Nutkin" eating the birdseed from our feeder in the tree outside our window. And we've all wondered if the little bunny that eats apples from our tree is Benjamin Bunny or Peter Rabbit. They love the stories and the beautiful drawings.

There is a site that you might find interesting. And also a movie about her life. Taylor and I watched it together. It was wonderful and inspiring, but unexpectedly sad. I didn't know enough about Miss Potter's life to see the sad part coming. But I would recommend it, none the less. I will share it with my other 2 girls when they get a little older.

Happy Birthday, Miss Potter! Thank you for the charming books that have been enjoyed by so many children!

TTFN

~Tina

Evan's Birthday Party

We celebrated Evan's birthday last weekend on the actual day with a special visit from Grandma and Pap Pap. Evan had a great time as did all the girls. We are so grateful they were able to come down. But since Evan's tummy was still acting up, we decide to wait on the cake and icecream until he was feeling better. So that's what we did yesterday.

I just used a Thomas the Tank Engine candle and created the icing trees and track. It was simple, but cute, and Evan LOVED it!

He kept saying, "Birthday Cake! Birthday Cake!".

We sang to him, and he seemed mesmerized.
Then he opened his presents from us. He had opened his gifts from our families last week when Grandma and Pap Pap were here.

Each of his sisters had something special for him and they couldn't wait for him to open his gifts.And John and I got him a few things too, like this playrug that we will eventually put in his room.

The kids just had fun playing with Evan for the rest of the night. John joined in, played some music on the computer and we were even dancing around! It was a good night.

TTFN

~Tina

Yesterday with Alexa

Skylar was invited to go swimming and spend the day with a friend yesterday, so after some shopping in the morning, we dropped her off right after lunch. Alexa and Sky, though they do have their quarrels, are pretty much wonderful playmates. They each play alone and do their own thing at times, but when they want someone to pal around with, they mostly turn to each other.

With Sky out of the house, all afternoon and evening, I knew Alexa would be a little lonely. She did play by herself for a bit, but eventually wanted to be with someone. Taylor was on the phone with a friend and Evan was taking his nap, so Alexa and I spent some time together. Here is a sampling of our afternoon together.

We did a craft. My Alexa LOVES to craft and I had come across this kit when I was cleaning out our schoolroom (I hope to post about that next week).

It was a simple sand art craft that Taylor received years ago as a birthday present and only used it once. She was happy to let Alexa enjoy it.

It's like the sand art you can make at street fairs or craft shows.

She had a lot of fun and we were both happy with the results. They turned out so bright and cheery!

Then we went on to bake Evan's birthday cake. Evan's birthday was last week, but we couldn't have cake due to his stomach bug. So now that he's better, we are celebrating again.

Alexa was excited as we put on her apron. She eagerly helped me with the pouring and the mixing.

She's a great helper and we both enjoyed the time together.

I'll try to post about his party soon, with a picture or 2 of the finished cake.

TTFN

~Tina

More of My New Nephew!

How beautiful can one little baby boy be?!!!!!!!

Little Brayden is just cute as a button!

And look at this adorable, loving big sister!

(Yes, I'm their Aunt, but they really are just the sweetest!)

Still can't wait to meet you, Brayden!

Love,

Uncle John, Aunt Tina, Taylor, Sky, Alexa and Evan

Scenes from a Summer's Day

Scenes from a Summer's Day

What's in our yard, today?

Squirrels,
Girls, And a flower with a "surprise" inside.
More Scenes from a Summer's Day can be found over at Renee's.

Thanks for stopping by!

TTFN

~Tina

Welcome Baby Brayden!!!

We are so happy! My brother and his wife welcomed their new little one into the world today!

Daddy (my brother) with his daughter, Kyra and new son in his arms!

He is going to be adored by many, including his big sister, Kyra!

Grandma (my mom) with Kyra and Brayden.

Both Grandma's were able to be there to share in the joy! We will make the trip to meet this precious little boy sometime in August. But he is certainly in our thoughts and prayers.

We can't wait to meet you, Brayden!

And you, Kyra, are going to be a wonderful big sister!

Hugs and kisses and love from us all,

Uncle John, Aunt Tina, and cousins Taylor, Sky, Alexa and Evan

I Knew They Would Enjoy It!

I posted yesterday about the toddler bag exchange we are participating in. I also mentioned how I thought my girls might like some of these activities, too. Well, I was right....

While Evan, aka "The Toddler", slept, his 2 older sisters requested a craft. They asked for the puppet-making craft in particular, because they had seen it the day before. I decided that there was plenty of stuff in the bag for Evan to have his turn eventually, so I let them go.

A little later, sister #3 joined in. They had a good time with it, and even used their puppets to entertain him later. He loved it!

After all this, Alexa requested another craft (my poor kids have been "craft-deprived" lately), so I had her decorate this picture frame. She decorated it with hearts and flowers for St. Anne (feast of St. Joachim and St. Anne on Saturday). Then we glued the holy card inside. It turned out lovely and we put it in our prayer corner.

TTFN

~Tina

Some of Taylor's Artwork

These are some drawings Taylor did this past school year. They are from The Flower Fairies books.

For her assignments, she would copy the poem, then draw the picture. I used these poetry books as copywork for her all year. But every couple of weeks, she would have to also draw the fairy and mount both the drawing and copywork on cardstock, then put it in her Nature Notebook. I think this was one of her favorite parts of school. And I love looking back at all the lovely drawings she has done throughout the year.

TTFN

~Tina